Detroit Medical Center Celebrates National Nurses Week 2020

DETROIT — Detroit Medical Center hospitals honor their nurses during National Nurses Week (May 6-12), an annual celebration that recognizes the value of nursing. The theme this year, Compassion|Expertise|Trust, celebrates qualities in nursing that are perhaps more important today than ever before as nurses are serving on the front lines of care during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Nursing is one of the most rewarding careers, but also one of the most challenging,” said Shawn Levitt, group chief nursing officer of the Detroit Medical Center and Children’s Hospital of Michigan. “During these extraordinary times, we couldn’t be more thankful for all of our nurses and the hard work they put in every day. This celebratory week is about paying tribute to them and the daily impact they have on our patients’ lives.”

National Nurses Week is celebrated annually from May 6, also known as National Nurses Day, through May 12, the birthday of Florence Nightingale, the founder of modern nursing. The year 2020, Florence’s 200th birthday, has been declared the Year of the Nurse. Like Florence Nightingale, hundreds of thousands of nurses stand on the front lines of a pandemic. Today, as Florence Nightingale did in her time, our nurses’ represent a profession of advocacy and strength and are respected for their compassion and commitment to patient care.

Nursing has been described as an art and a science that embraces dedicated people with varied interests and strengths because of the many opportunities the field offers. Our nurses have many roles – from staff nurse to nursing leader and educator to nurse practitioner – and they serve these roles with a passion for the profession and a strong commitment to patient safety.

During National Nurses Week, hospitals and other healthcare organizations across the country are encouraged to educate the public about the role nurses play in caring for our community.

“DMC recognizes, acknowledges and trusts the strong commitment, compassion, expertise and care our nurses display in their practice and profession,” said Levitt. “Now more than ever, they truly make a difference in the lives of our community.”