Colleagues,
You did it! Our Leapfrog Grade is an A, and now everyone can see what goes into the outstanding care we provide here at UAMS Health. This achievement and recognition make me so proud of all of you and the hard work you have put in over the past several years to improve our quality and safety ratings. To see more about the specifics, be sure to read Dr. Krause’s weekly newsletter today.
This news about our Leapfrog A is perfect timing for our 2024 Nurses Week theme of “Proud to be a UAMS Nurse.” We have so much to be proud of as UAMS nurses right now.
In addition to being recognized for our patient satisfaction surveys and safety and quality metrics through the Leapfrog Grade, 24 UAMS nurses were honored by Publishing Concepts as nominees and honorees for the Compassionate Nurse and Nurse Educator Awards. Please join me in congratulating all of these outstanding nurses.
I’m looking forward to celebrating these accomplishments and all those of the past year with you during Nurses Week. Please participate in as many events and activities as you are able and, if you see me, please come say hi or introduce yourself if we haven’t met yet. I really want to put a face with as many names as possible and get to know every nurse at UAMS.
- Look for some of our nursing directors Saturday evening as they greet nurses coming and going with a treat and thank you. I’ll be participating in the UAMS Be a Part of the Cure Walk on Saturday morning and will be in the hospital on Sunday morning for my weekend rounds.
- Monday morning I’ll be with other nursing leaders at Parking 2 from 6 to 7:15 and at the Outpatient Center entrance from 7:25 to 8:15.
- Later Monday morning we’ll officially start Nurses Week with the CNO Kick-off and the Blessing of the Hands at 11 a.m. in the Hospital Lobby Gallery. If you can’t attend in person, I hope you’ll join us on the UAMS Nurses Facebook page as we have a live feed from 11 to 11:30 a.m. We have 58 entries in our photo contest, and I’ll announce the winners at this event.
- Tuesday morning please wear your new “Proud to be a UAMS Nurse” t-shirt and join me at 10:30 in front of the fountain outside the hospital (or in the Lobby Gallery if it’s raining) for a group photo.
- On Wednesday, please join the Annual Professional Nursing Awards at 2 p.m. via Zoom or the UAMS Nurses Facebook live feed. We have 30 outstanding nominees for this year’s nursing awards.
- I’ll be out and about visiting units the rest of the week and encouraging everyone to participate in our Appreciation Day and Selfie Day. Post your appreciation notes and selfies with your nursing besties on your social media accounts and tag with #UAMSNurses to be entered in the prize drawings. Click here for details.
- The following week, on May 15th, we’ll present our sixth nursing award, the Mary Helen Forrest Legacy in Nursing Award during the Awards of Excellence at 10:00 a.m. as part of Team UAMS Week. Click here for a link to watch this ceremony. The Helen May Compassionate Care Award and the Team Impact Award will also be presented at this event.
Don’t forget to take advantage of the special Merchant Discounts for nurses next week!
We truly have so much to be proud of as UAMS nurses. I want to thank each of you for making this possible, but especially our Nurses Rock committee for their work to make next week special. Thank you, Lindsay Carlisle, Deloris Chandler, Ava Coleman, LaDonna Cox, Deidra Dobbs, Tammy Drake, Susan Erickson, Lisa Forrest, Natasha Hunter, Sou Irani, Steffanie Lee, Jean Prince, Rolonda Rice, Alyssa Robinson, Hannah Robinson, Becky Sartini, Melissa Tillman and Misty Williams for your dedication to our UAMS nurses. I’ve enjoyed witnessing their creativity and enthusiasm, and I hope you’ll take time to personally thank them as well.
I look forward to celebrating with you in the days to come!
Tammy Jones, PHD, RN, NE-BC
Chief Nursing Officer
Associate Vice Chancellor for Patient Care Services & Clinical Operations
Perioperative, Interventional & Imaging Services Division