[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 71 (Thursday, May 17, 2012)]
[House]
[Page H2819]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    CELEBRATING NATIONAL NURSES WEEK

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from West 
Virginia (Mr. McKinley) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. McKINLEY. Madam Speaker, every year, in May, this country 
celebrates National Nurses Week. Often described as an art and a 
science, nursing is a profession that embraces dedicated people with 
varied interests, strengths, and passions because of the many 
opportunities the profession offers.
  As a husband of a critical care nurse, I know all about the lives 
they touch each and every day. They work in emergency rooms, school-
based clinics, hospitals, and homeless shelters, just to name a few. 
They have many roles, from staff nurses to educators to nurse 
practitioners and nurse researchers, and serve all of them with a 
passion for the profession and with a strong commitment to patient 
security and safety.
  National Nurses Week occurs each year in May, surrounding Florence 
Nightingale's birthday. Our nurses strive for excellence in all they 
do. They provide patients and their families with skilled, 
compassionate care, and help them navigate a very complex and 
oftentimes overwhelming health care system to provide safe passage for 
the patients and their families.
  Regardless of their role or title, nurses educate, counsel, advocate, 
and lead. These men and women work to make a difference to countless 
patients, families, and communities who benefit from nurses' dedication 
and professionalism.
  This month is a time to reflect on all the good nurses do. It is a 
time to acknowledge and celebrate the differences our nurses make.

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