Marion County Medical Center Joins the Nation in Saluting Nurses

05/04/2007

Each year National Nurses Week is held from May 6th through May 12th, this weeklong celebration of the nursing profession culminates on the birthday of Florence Nightingale, the founder of modern nursing.  The 2007 theme is Nursing: A Profession and a Passion. In keeping with the theme of this year’s celebration- we first look at nursing as a profession.  It has been said that nursing is an art and a science- a profession that embraces dedicated people with varied interests, strengths and passions because of the many opportunities the profession offers.  The realm of possibilities are somewhat endless for those looking to start a career in nursing, whether you are in a direct patient care environment or in a supportive role, the practice provides geographic flexibility, financial security and a variety of jobs within any workplace.   Currently there are 2.4 million Registered Nurses employed in the United States, the US Bureau of Labor and Statistics indicates that this number will grow to 2.9 million by 2012.  It is predicted that this growth along with the number of nurses retiring from the profession and fewer nurses entering the field will result in a shortage of more than one million nurses by the end of this decade.   In light of these startling facts, South Carolina has started a campaign known as One Voice One Plan.  This plan, developed in conjunction with the South Carolina Hospital Association will work to develop a designated entity to generate nursing workforce supply and demand data.  In 2005 alone, over 1,000 qualified students were turned away from nursing programs due to the lack of faculty and currently 75% of the states’ nurses are over the age of 40, One Voice One Plan will work to help resolve these and other issues, once implemented the plan will result in 1,000 times more nurses annually that over time will bring at least $42 million in salaries into the economy. Passion in nursing never comes in short supply, especially when you’re talking about the network of nursing professionals who call Marion County Medical Center home.   These professionals embrace technology and evidence based nursing practices in an effort to make the care they deliver as safe as possible for all patients.  Driven by a mission to make life better for people within their community, when asked “What do you like about nursing?” the response is common- “We’re here for the patients and by helping them we change lives on a daily basis.”   Join Us As We Salute Our Nursing Professionals! For more information contact Vickie Underwood, Director of Patient Services of Marion Regional Healthcare System by calling 843-431-2073.