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In This Issue:
Hispanic Heritage Award recipients Ana Lora, Wanda Ocasio and Lina Sánchez, BSN, RN.
Patient Care Assistant Ana Lora recently formed such a strong bond with one of her Spanish-speaking patients that she volunteered to help care for the patient even after she moved to another unit in Shapiro.
“During lunch, Ana would go to the other unit and give this patient a bath,” said Matt Quin, RN, nursing director for the Cardiac Surgery ICU. “This is just one example of the many ways she goes above and beyond everyday to care for our patients and support our nursing team.”
Lora, along with Wanda Ocasio, operations supervisor for the Pharmacy Department, and Lina Sánchez, BSN, RN, of Tower 4B Oncology, were honored for their dedication and commitment with Hispanic Heritage Awards.
Sponsored by the departments of Nursing and Patient Care Services, the awards acknowledge and celebrate the contributions of staff with Hispanic and Latino backgrounds.
This year’s ceremony featured guest speaker Oswald Mondejar, vice president of Human Resources at Partners Continuing Care, who spoke about his Cuban heritage and encouraged attendees to continue to strive for professional growth.
“Seek the help of a mentor who can teach you new things,” said Mondejar. “And for those of you who are in the position to help—be a mentor. There is nothing more rewarding than helping another person succeed.”
During the ceremony, each recipient shared their reflections with the audience.
“On my way to work, I always think of how I can make a difference to my patient and family,” said Lora.
Ocasio told the audience, “I have always tried to be a voice for individuals with different backgrounds and cultures. We need to understand why people do things differently; we need to explore each individual. It’s only then that we become more understanding and tolerant of these differences and better able to serve our community.”
Sánchez noted how empowering it is for patients to be able to communicate with care providers in their own language. “It makes the patient feel that much more a part of his or her care team,” she said. “After all, the patient is ultimately the number one person on that team.”
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