Friday, May 28, 2004
“...Presented with Dedication, Admiration and Respect To Our Cardiovascular Nurses, the Cornerstone of Cardiovascular Care.”
The words engraved on the shiny, black commemorative plaque spoke volumes and they came straight from the heart. Amidst an enthusiastic gathering of employees and other dignitaries at The Wisconsin Heart Hospital on May 13, the hospital’s cardiovascular physicians unveiled a beautiful bronze commemorative statue to honor the unique contribution that nurses extend to quality patient care at the hospital.
The wonderfully detailed rendering of a uniformed nurse will be on permanent display in the hospital lobby. At her feet will be an inscription with the names of the physicians who not only financed the project but have also established an ongoing nursing education fund.
“I’m very appreciative of this opportunity to publicly express my appreciation to all of the nurses and the espirit de corps that they have developed here,” James F. King, M.D., Medical Director of The Wisconsin Heart Hospital, said has he addressed the ceremonial gathering. “As a physician, I am very proud of that and I know how vital that is. In attempting to design a quality patient and family oriented cardiovascular hospital, we recognize right away that our success is totally dependent on a combination of highly-trained nurses and good patient care. We recognize the vital contributions that you nurses have made to our practices and we also realize that high-quality nursing care has allowed all of us as cardiovascular physicians to successfully treat patients and enjoy a very rewarding career. I’m excited and humbled as the medical director of The Wisconsin Heart Hospital to be a part of this presentation in appreciation of the nursing staff. I know that I speak for all of my colleagues when I say that.”
Jack C. Manley, M.D., President of the medical staff, echoed Dr. King’s sentiments a few moments later. “We are very aware that the cardiovascular nurse brings compassion, brings empathy and brings medical expertise to help the sick, to help the dying and to help those that are fearful,” Manley said. “She or he also brings and advocacy, that is, they are advocates for the patient. Over the years, it’s been my observation that the nurses have more knowledge, they ask more questions, they are more probing and they bring more expertise. I find this very refreshing. It also very helpful to me because there has been an expanded nurse-physician relationship. I think there’s a true partnership and with the cardiovascular nurse in a very pivotal role. It’s very challenging to be at the bedside and it’s been very helpful to patients and very helpful to me. It’s very important to have nursing help excellence, not only at the bedside but in the education, the research and the nursing administration and that’s to be valued. As physicians, we value our nurses. This week, we’ve been letting all of our hospital employees know of our gratitude. Tonight is a special presentation to the nurses and one that will permanently display our feelings to the public as well. We have superb, caring cardiovascular nurses and we are very proud to be working with you.”
While the entire nursing staff was not able to be present for the ceremony, Michele Koss, R.N. of the Emergency Department at The Wisconsin Heart Hospital, beamed her appreciation as she accepted the honor on behalf of her nursing colleagues. “I’d like to thank Dr. Manley, Dr. King and the other physicians here at The Wisconsin Heart Hospital,” Koss began. “It is certainly an honor to represent the nurses at this facility and to be a part of this kind of a collaborative environment. It is for me a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that some nurses seldom experience. The environment here has been created because of the nature of our relationship with the physicians and with each other in an open kind of atmosphere. The barriers I’ve experienced at other facilities just aren’t here and that’s because every day is a new start, a new way to look at my clinical practice and a new way to problem solve. If it’s not working right, we sit back and look at it and tomorrow it changes.”
Later in an interview, Koss elaborated a bit more on the evolving role nurses play in the hospital setting and her thoughts on the unique environment that has been created at The Wisconsin Heart Hospital. “We feel extremely appreciated tonight,” said Koss. “This is such an incredible environment to work in when you have a group of physicians who are so committed to patient care and positive outcomes and, along with that, creating an environment where the nurses are free to practice and collaborate with them and make a big difference. Then you look at this tribute and I think, ‘You know what? They truly care!’ And they’re truly committed to us as well. While we’ve been appreciated in other facilities, the barriers to making progress always seem to be there. You run into these obstacles and the politics of the facilities come into play. Here, we are making it happen. It isn’t the physicians vs. the nurses. We are the group that’s going to make things happen. That’s apparent the moment you come in here.”
The statue, a permanent reminder of the importance of quality nursing care, was commissioned by the Gingrass Gallery and was more than a year in the making.
