Today marks the last day of National Nurses Week, and it’s also the birthday of one of the most notable nurses in history, Florence Nightingale (1820-1910). The American Nurses Association declared May to be Nurse’s Month, and the World Health Organization declared 2020 as the “Year of the Nurse.” Really, every day should be Nurse’s Day!
Shining the light on nurses, especially today, holds significant meaning as Florence Nightingale’s birthday, who was the founder of modern nursing. National Nurses Week was first observed in October 1954 because it was the 100th anniversary of Florence Nightingale’s mission to Crimean, where she worked in overcrowded hospital wards during the Crimean War (1853-1856). Interestingly, due to her habit of making nightly rounds, Florence became known as “The Lady with the Lamp.” During one of her rounds, Florence noticed many soldiers had contracted respiratory infections, so she opened the windows, and the infection rate dropped dramatically. With that small yet bold step, she saved lives.
In the spirit of “The Lady with the Lamp,” Guardian Nurses Healthcare Advocates was founded and is dedicated to lighting the way through the healthcare maze for thousands of patients and families.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, RingCentral became a light for the Guardian Nurses Healthcare Advocates, based in Pennsylvania. On March 11, 2020, the governor shut down the state, and Guardian Nurses were not allowed into hospitals or doctors’ offices, and they all had to start working from home. Imagine the challenges this signaled since they are the “light” and bridge between patients and doctors. However, by utilizing RingCentral’s simplified communications, they had messaging, video, and phone all on one app to help them. But do not take my word for it – hear from Guardian Nurses Healthcare Advocates President/CEO and Founder, Betty Long, RN, MHA, in this video, where she says:
“Thanks to all the features in RingCentral, I am proud to say that we did not miss a heartbeat, and I’m even prouder to say we grew even stronger. Even though our team is made up of highly trained critical care nurses, they would much rather be doing CPR on a patient than signing into a video meeting, but the RingCentral meeting app and software made it simple for them to stay connected to one another and to their patients.”
In times of isolation, frustration, and confusion, the Guardian Nurses were able to connect daily on vital and non-vital information by message, video, and phone. There was not one dropped call, not one technical difficulty, and not one interference made, according to Long, who says, “once we knew that RingCentral could take care of our team of nurses, we made sure it could help us take care of our patients.”
Guardian Nurses stayed connected with their patients through the lockdown and provided critical information. One way they did so was by offering free video town halls. Guardian Nurses also offered virtual meetings to patients so that they could explain what was going on with their loved ones, answer clinical questions, and offer emotional support. Having the video capability allowed Guardian Nurses to support their patients for virtual home video visits, and an accompaniment to a physician’s office became a virtual video accompaniment. Then they took the technology one bold step further and began recording a new podcast series, called “Lighting Your Way Podcast,” using RingCentral. This was a welcome addition to their patient education materials.
We are so proud and humbled to have helped Guardian Nurses Healthcare Advocates persevere and provide critical care to their patients and then help them expand their reach to help even more patients. We celebrate and shine a light on nurses everywhere today and every day!
How are you celebrating, helping, and shining a light on nurses? I would love to hear from you.
