How Did YOU Celebrate this Year?

2020 has been a difficult year for everyone, including our own NOVA nurses who have been on the frontlines since March taking care of the Veterans. To celebrate the hard work of our members and nurses everywhere, this year was named Year of the Nurse.

NOVA’s Year of the Nurse

With COVID-19 in full swing, NOVA’s Nurses Week and Annual Meeting were different, hosted virtually but still focused on celebrating NOVA members’ resilience and unyielding commitment to patients. NOVA's social media lit up during both of these events with a nod to the Year of the Nurse. See the slideshow video here.

Your Year of the Nurse

Many NOVA nurses celebrated the Year of the Nurse in their own ways.

One NOVA nurse’s facility celebrated the Year of the Nurse during the pandemic by serving food and desserts to different nursing units and other disciplines. During Nurses Week, nurses received a laminated Nursing Prayer, and during hurricane season, NOVA nurses came together and worked diligently to send personal hygiene items, food, and clothing to areas affected by the hurricanes.

Another member reported that their facility ordered t-shirts that nurses could wear throughout the year, posted unit-based videos to their employee site, and had a Nurse Recognition Wall.

Other NOVA nurses celebrated the Year of the Nurse by giving out personalized bags filled with self-care items, a nursing awards ceremony to recognize education advancements and certifications, and more. 

The NOVA community came together to recognize, support, and celebrate their colleagues and friends in nursing. What a proud year for nurses!

What Year of the Nurse Means to You

Looking back on the year, NOVA wanted to know what the Year of the Nurse meant to you, the frontline defense for Veterans during the pandemic.

One nurse said that nurses are the backbone of the healthcare industry; have been trusted year after year by the public to provide quality, safe care; and is glad that the Year of the Nurse is there to highlight the difficult work nurses do for the public.

Another member felt that the Year of the Nurse is a way for nurses to acknowledge their hard work and struggles. They continue to say that nurses are always the first to take on caring for others and that they sacrifice so much of themselves to others with no regrets. 

Another nurse wanted to highlight the nurses who are deep in the COVID-19 response, the ones who are picking up the slack, working short-staffed and in unpopular areas like nursing homes, mental health facilities, and even in primary care.

Continue Celebrating in 2021

How can we keep the momentum going as we start a new year still navigating a challenging healthcare climate?

One NOVA nurse thinks nurses’ voices should be heard in Congress about how nurses were involved with the COVID-19 pandemic response and says that nurses were one of the many heroes of the continuing pandemic.

Another member encouraged NOVA chapters to make a display to acknowledge all NOVA nurses in the country. 

In an effort to showcase the reality of NOVA nurses’ work, one member suggested sharing photos of nurses fighting the pandemic on VA websites, screensavers, and publications as well as a “Thank A Nurse” card-writing campaign to continue showing what our members do.

The Year of the Nurse may be over in 2020, but the solidarity, kindness, and camaraderie displayed throughout this year will carry us confidently, compassionately, into 2021 and beyond.