Nurses appreciated for what they do every day
The last 13 months have been a trying time for everyone. No one in Butler County has arguably worked harder to get lives back to normal than the staff at Butler Memorial Hospital.
“Our community wasn't hit that hard. Fall hit a little harder,” explained Victoria Williams, a nurse with Butler Health System.
“I was amazed at how our team, our floor and the whole hospital came together. We leaned on one another; we were working 16-hour shifts back to back at times.”
That is why National Nurses Week, celebrated May 6 to 12, is the perfect time to show these front-line health care workers how much the community appreciates what they do every day.
During this week of celebration, however, area nurses are remaining humble, insisting that no extra praise is necessary.
“This is our job; this is what we do. I don't think we need to be recognized,” said Trish Hurley, a fellow nurse at BMH. “I have no doubt they appreciate us. We got tons of support.”
“I'm honestly amazed I've received so much gratitude. I never saw it as I deserved any extra praise,” Williams echoed. “I literally went weeks without having to pay for a lunch because people donated so much food.”
Hurley and Williams both work on the sixth floor of the hospital's tower. Hurley works on the surgical floor and Williams works with orthopedic patients.Both nurses said their jobs caring for patients are reward enough without any extra recognition heaped on top.“Nothing makes my day better than when a patient says they appreciate what I do for them,” Williams said.“You come to work every day and your day is different; it's not like a desk job,” Hurley added. “Just knowing you made, or tried to make, a difference in a family's life feels good.”While they are in similar positions now, Williams' and Hurley's paths to becoming nurses were very different.Hurley said she knew she wanted to be a nurse from an early age. Her mother, Rhonda Bowser, graduated nursing school when Hurley was 15 years old and has worked at Butler hospital ever since.Hurley followed in her mother's footsteps, graduating from the nursing program at Butler County Community College in 2002. Hurley said her mother supported her the entire way.“I knew I wanted to be a nurse. Who doesn't want to help somebody every day?” Hurley asked. “She was pro-nursing, but she would've been pro-anything I wanted to do.”
While not working directly with each other, Hurley and Bowser have both been nurses with the Butler Health System for nearly 20 years. Bowser, who works in the recovery room, is set to retire at the end of the month.Williams, on the other hand, started at the hospital more or less on a whim. A friend who worked there told her the hospital was looking for help and, with no background, Williams got a job as a nursing assistant. “I fell into the position as a nursing assistant and as I interacted with patients, I fell in love with the process,” Williams said. “My boss approached me after one year and asked if I was interested in nursing school.”Williams went to BC3 and graduated from the UPMC St. Margaret School of Nursing. She has now been with BHS for eight years, and said the encouragement from her boss was the extra little push she needed. “I knew that was what I wanted to do, but it was good to hear,” she said.The week will culminate with International Nurses Day on Wednesday. The International Council of Nurses' theme for this year's National Nurses Day is “Nurses: A Voice to Lead — A Vision for Future Healthcare.”
