Rooks County Health Center News
National Nurses Week
Last week, May 6-12, wasn’t just National Hospital week. It was also National Nurses week. This year the national theme for Nurses Week was "Nursing: A Profession and a Passion", which couldn’t be more true for the nurses at Rooks County Health Center.
Rural nurses like those in Rooks County gain more of a holistic experience compared to those in larger medical centers. In fact, it’s common for a rural nurse to begin a shift in the emergency room, assist in delivering at noon and then perhaps end the day providing one on one care for a patient with a severe asthmatic episode.
Rural nurses must be skilled in several specialties. But, besides having a strong clinical knowledge, nurses in a rural setting also have to have an understanding of community. Whether they’re at the grocery store, at church or on the unit in the hospital they’re always the “nurse” in the community.
"You really know your patients," she said. "You know their family, you know their grandparents. There’s that continuity there that you don’t have in the more transient city," said Lori Frederking RN, Director of Nurses.
Looking after people one knows instills a stronger sense of accountability for staff in the rural setting. Nurses often times find it rewarding to know the patients personally and "to see what impact the care has made on this person’s life," Frederking, who grew up in a rural area herself, also said a nurse working in a rural area can benefit from a closer sense of community.
Rural nurses play a critical role in ensuring rural Americans' access to quality health care. "To me, the big satisfaction of rural nursing is that it’s all about relationships," Frederking said. "If you’re a people person, it’s the place to be," said Frederking.
Rooks County Health Center celebrated both National Hospital Week and National Nurses Week with several events including the annual health fair.