Dear Colleagues,
Our nurses are the fabric of our organization. With a 40% increase in nursing staff over the last five years, we currently employ more than 9,000 nursing professionals.
Today, as we begin celebrating Nurses Week, I want to thank you for all that you do to help advance our missions and improve the lives of the patients and families who trust you with their care.
Again this year, instead of recognizing our nurses for just one week, Nurses Week will include a monthlong series of awards, gatherings, recognitions and celebrations at each of our hospitals.
Like other hospitals and health systems throughout the country, we continue to operate in a challenging environment. As a result, your contributions are more important than ever. Each day, your dedication, resilience and empathy have a lasting impact on those we serve.
As examples of your commitment to the highest professional standards, the VUH Medical Intensive Care Unit recently received the American Association of Critical Care Nurses excellence award, and VUMC was awarded the Best Workplace for Men in Nursing for the fifth consecutive time.
We will continue to support initiatives that transform and empower nursing practice along with efforts that increase efficiency and innovation to help you do your best work, such as the virtual nursing program. And there are exciting new opportunities with the recent completion of the expansion of Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt and the upcoming opening of the Jim Ayers Tower. We are also building on the many successes of our regional hospitals and clinics with the addition of new programs and services to better meet the needs of the communities we serve.
As we celebrate our nurses throughout the month, Dr. Pinson and I want to thank you for all that you do every day.
Sincerely,
Jeff Balser, President and CEO, VUMC; Dean, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine
