The Healing Touch of UMMC Employees

Good morning!

Today, we’re kicking off Employee Appreciation Week, a tribute to the Medical Center’s 10,000-strong workforce – that’s YOU! – and the convergence of National Nurses Week, observed May 6-12, and National Hospital Week, set for May 9-15.

When many of you arrived on campus this morning, you had a cheering squad waiting for you and a parade in your honor that included the likes of Miss Mississippi Mary Margaret Hyer, Jackson Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba, a host of metro-area law enforcement and emergency services vehicles, a contingent of Corvettes and more. That familiar sound of a helicopter flying over our grounds? Not our beloved AirCare, but the yellow-and-blue chopper of the Mississippi Highway Patrol.

The festive pep rally planned by LeAnn Harcharik, 4 Wiser nurse manager, wraps together the two national observances into our unique Medical Center celebration of our entire employee family. From my heart and those of our hospital leaders, we thank each and every one of you for the dedication you show to our patients and their families, and for your perseverance and resilience during the challenges wrought by the last year and a half.

But as LeAnn told members of the media who captured our celebration live for the morning news: Thank you is not adequate.

You do extraordinary work.

You care for the sickest of the sick.

You help families in crisis navigate the health care system.

You make all the difference.

Throughout the year, the Medical Center observes many national days or weeks that shine a light on specific medical career fields or diseases, such as sickle cell and diabetes. Recently, we saluted our physicians on National Doctors’ Day. Such observances provide year-round opportunities for us to thank our coworkers for all they do.

Yesterday, we called attention to our 3,000-strong nursing force with the dedication of The Healer’s Touch, a 150-pound sculpture located in the University Hospital breezeway. Each one-of-a-kind sculpture is hand-carved in Zimbabwe by a member of the Shona Tribe. They’re made available through the DAISY Foundation, established in 2000 to honor nurses nationwide.

Stop by and look at its beautiful message of the profound relationship between nurses and their patients, and the gifts that nurses give patients and families every day.

And give yourself a well-deserved pat on the back as we continue celebrating Employee Appreciation Week with events scheduled this coming Monday through Friday. It takes a team to do the meaningful work required of an academic medical center such as ours, and every one of you – affectionately known as People of the U– plays a significant role.

You make #UMMCStrong. This year, we took that mantra to another level. We are STRONGER TOGETHER.

Thank you for your passion, every day of the year, to give our patients stellar care and to creatively advance our statewide leadership role in health care, research and education. They all play a part in our overall goal of creating A Healthier Mississippi.