OMNI homes getting ready to celebrate nurses for their hard work
Nursing week provides opportunities to acknowledge the efforts of caregivers
Thursday April 24, 2008 -- Deron Hamel
National Nursing Week may be almost a month away but some OMNI long-term care homes are already making plans for celebrations to show nursing staff that their tireless efforts do not go unnoticed.

From May 12 to 18, OMNI’s 17 long-term care homes will host celebrations to toast their nursing staff in recognition of the week.

Linda Pierce, administrator at Village Green, gets the Selby long-term care home into the spirit of National Nursing Week every year, but this year’s celebrations will feature more events than ever.

Pierce explains the importance of the week.

“It’s showing appreciation for a group of people that really work hard, are very devoted and are giving back,” she says. “It shows how valuable these nurses are who are working so hard and making a difference to other human beings.”

To mark the week, management at Village Green has been busy planning speaking engagements. OMNI’s chief operating officer Candace Chartier will be delivering a speech May 14 about the important role nurses play in long-term care. On May 15 the home will hear from representatives from the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care.

Like Village Green, Willows Estate has been planning activities to celebrate nursing staff during National Nursing Week.

The Aurora long-term care home is making arrangements to hold social gatherings for staff members and will be providing food for everyone throughout the week.

Rosemary Ferraro, the home’s director of care, says too often the work of nurses goes “unnoticed.” Having celebrations in homes during the week is a vehicle to boost morale, draw staff members together and to celebrate successes, she adds.

“I think that (nurses) get appreciation all the time for all the obvious things but all their care and attention basically goes unnoticed,” she says “So we want to acknowledge the fact that we know all the things that they do.”

The Canadian Nurses Association’s (CNA) website offers several tips on how to acknowledge nurses during the week. For more information about what you can do to help celebrate nurses for their hard work, visit www.cna-nurses.ca.

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