Smiles! Oh how I love seeing them again! I hope this means we have turned the corner and can leave the pain of the past month and the struggles of the past three years behind.
January 2023 has to go down as one of the most difficult months in UAMS history. We returned from the holiday break to face the loss of College of Medicine Dean Susan Smyth, then experienced patient flow challenges due to an influx of flu and COVID patients coupled with staffing shortages and closed beds at hospitals across Central Arkansas, then the tragic deaths of two UAMS team members, followed by icy weather that closed most of Little Rock for three days and made it difficult for many to get to work here at UAMS.
Can we just go back and start 2023 again? I want a do over.
A life lesson I try to remember during challenging times is to take the time to learn and grow from each experience. For example, as difficult as it was to think about the loss of our colleague, Stacy Petty, APRN, the memorial service honoring her made all of us there more proud than ever to be a nurse. From the stories shared about Stacy, it was easy to see how important nursing was to her. Like so many UAMS nurses, she was just wired that way – from her love for animals to being a yoga instructor, she was committed to helping others.
The Arkansas Nurse Honor Guard participated in the service and one representative read The Nightingale Tribute. By the time she read the final words, I believe every nurse there was sobbing. I think many of us were grieving, not only for Stacy and her life and career cut short, but also for nurses around the world and all they have endured during the pandemic.
February is my favorite month, and, I hope, the beginning of brighter days in 2023. We are now past the 10 darkest weeks of the year, and with the longer, brighter days, my hope is a brighter outlook.
If you have nursing friends looking for a brighter future, please tell them about job opportunities at our new Orthopaedic and Spine Hospital. You can find all the details and a list of openings at the Ortho Hospital web site. Current UAMS nurses are eligible to apply to these positions too, but our hope is to grow our UAMS family so we can continue to serve all the patients who need our care.
UAMS will be celebrating Kindness Week in a couple of weeks. Let’s all make 2023 a year of self-kindness. If you need ideas to begin your self-care journey, check out all the new resources from the UAMS Wellness program, including monthly retreats and the WellSteps app.
Looking forward to a smile-filled February,
Trenda