JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO, Texas –
Brooke Army Medical Center held the 116th Army Nurse Corps birthday celebration Feb. 2 in the auditorium. This year’s theme was, “Leading readiness and professional practice: Getting it done since 1901.”
“That’s what we embody,” said Col. Traci Crawford, BAMC deputy commander. “What an awesome opportunity to focus on that and to give us something to strive for as we continue to sharpen our saw and continue to provide the best care we can to our service members.”
Maj. Gen. Barbara Holcomb, chief of the U.S. Army Nurse Corps, was the guest speaker for the event, which included a presentation of the Army Nurse Corps history featuring nurses dressed in period uniforms and a cake cutting. Holcomb also presented coins five BAMC staff members.
“Truly leading readiness and professional practice is what Army nursing has been doing for the last 116 years,” Holcomb said. “Nurses display leadership traits and skills every day.”
Holcomb highlighted the fact that readiness is the Army’s number one priority.
“We are in a live fire exercise every single day,” she said. “We practice every single day when we are taking care of our patients, so every encounter is a readiness encounter.”
Holcomb also talked about the Army Patient Caring Touch practice model and virtual health care.
“It’s a bright future,” she said. “Lots of opportunities are still out there and Army nurses can be and are heavily engaged in it, but it’s a team sport. We aren’t doing it by ourselves; we need to be working together.
“This facility truly stands as a premiere health care facility and it’s because of the work that you all do and the team work and innovation that you provide,” Holcomb concluded. “Thank you very much for the work that you do for our service members and their families.”
BAMC Commander Brig. Gen. Jeffrey Johnson could not attend the ceremony so he recorded a video message to be played at the event.
In part, Johnson said, “Our nurses are the most prepared of any nurses in the military health system … We couldn’t do [our mission] without them.”
Army Col. Margaret Nava, BAMC chief nursing officer and Command Sgt. Maj. Albert Crews closed the ceremony by thanking everyone for coming and thanking the individuals who helped put the event together.