Patients at Parkland to receive valentines from nurses
More than 3,500 cards expected to be distributed during seventh year of the event
In an effort to spread the love this Valentine’s Day nurses at Parkland Health will be delivering handwritten cards to thousands of patients throughout the system. It’s the seventh year Parkland nurses have gone back to their youth by passing out cards.
The theme of this year’s event, scheduled from Feb. 10-16, is “Parkland Cares for You,” and nurses plan to deliver more than 3,500 signed valentines to hospitalized patients and those in Parkland’s network of community-based health centers. Signing and delivering the cards, they say, is something they look forward to in the days and weeks leading up to Valentine’s Day.
“The past two years have been incredibly hard, not just on our patients and their families, but on our staff as well,” said Donna Richardson, DNP, RN, NEA-BC, Parkland’s Interim Chief Nursing Executive. “Signing and delivering these cards not only lifts the spirits of our patients, but it’s a great morale booster for our staff. Even though we have looked forward to doing this in the past, this year it means even more because we didn’t get to do this last year because of COVID-19.”
Parkland’s Professional Excellence in Nursing (PEN) Council sponsors the project and provides English- and Spanish-language valentines for their colleagues to personalize for their patients. Parkland’s leadership also takes part in sharing their heart by signing cards.
This is the seventh year that Amy Artz, MSN, RN, associate nursing manager in Parkland’s Mother Baby unit, has taken part in the Valentine’s Day card distribution.
“It’s been a very tough couple of years, and to be able to give our patients who are away from their families a special pick-me-up really brings a lot of joy to everyone,” Artz said, adding that the smiles they receive in return brighten everyone’s day.
And for those mom’s who welcome their newborn on Feb. 14, nurses also plan to distribute special goodie bags filled with Valentine’s Day treats along with the cards. “We just wanted to make it even more special for those who have Valentine’s babies,” Artz said.
Brinju Basnet, RN, BSN in Parkland’s oncology unit said “spreading the love” on Valentine’s Day is something she looks forward to doing for her patients.
“Giving our patients a valentine really makes their day. It’s always a surprise when they receive the cards so I can tell that it really cheers them up,” Basnet said. “For me personally, handing out the cards makes me feel the love inside, too.”
Showing that we care with this small but tangible expression of compassion is a way for our nurses and staff to go beyond traditional medical care and relate to the emotional needs of our patients as well, according to Richardson.
“Whether they are dealing with an injury or an illness, when a patient receives a valentine from the staff caring for them, it’s an unexpected gift that we hope will brighten their day and take their minds off their physical problems for a few moments,” Richardson said.
For more information about services available at Parkland, please visit www.parklandhealth.org.
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