Award Marks National Nurses Week

PRLog (Press Release) – May 06, 2008 – As a tribute to nurses and an acknowledgement of the nation’s growing nursing shortage, the National Association for Home Care & Hospice (NAHC) has announced the first award in its new Aide-to-R.N. Scholarship Program. The announcement was made by National Association for Home Care & Hospice President Val J. Halamandaris on the first day of National Nurses Week, which honors nurses for the critical and selfless role they play in ministering to the sick and suffering.

The Aide-to-R.N. scholarships are awarded to nursing school students who work as home health aides. Jenelle Kross, a home health aide from Frankenmuth, Michigan, is the first recipient of the scholarship. A 2001 high school graduate, Kross works for Lutheran Home Care agency and is studying to be a registered nurse at Delta College in University Center, Michigan. She was awarded $500 from National Association for Home Care & Hospice and a matching $500 scholarship from the state affiliate, the Michigan Home Health Association.

“We are pleased to be able to award these scholarships to those who devote themselves to one of the most important careers in healthcare,” says Halamandaris. “The announcement of our scholarship program during National Nurses Week is our way of building awareness for the growing need for healthcare professionals.” National Nurses Week takes place every year from May 6—12th, ending appropriately on the day of Florence Nightingale’s birthday. “The purpose of nursing is to put the patient in the best condition for nature to act upon him,” once stated Nightingale. “We honor Nightingale’s work and thousands of other women and men that provide skilled nursing care for the frail, the elderly, the dying and the disabled,” says Halamandaris.

The National Association for Homecare and Hospice is the world’s largest trade association advocating for homecare and hospice care. The association, founded in 1982 and headquartered in Washington, DC, encourages development and delivery of the highest quality medical, social and supportive services to the nation’s frail, disabled and aged. Home health and hospice services range from high-tech skilled nursing and therapy to personal care management available by visit or around the clock. For more information, visit http://www.nahc.org.