Chair File: Acts of Kindness Shine through Dark Times

Even as the number of COVID-19 cases continues to rise, we鈥檙e seeing so many examples of exceptional kindness, courage and compassion with which our care providers are meeting the health challenge of a lifetime.
Every day and everywhere, our hospitals and health systems and their teams are giving their all for patients, working incredibly long hours at some risk to themselves and their families.
Nonetheless, physicians, nurses and other health care professionals are finding ways to deliver even more.
For example:
- , doctors and nurses wrote daily goals for him to read on a window in his room. At the bottom, a promise: "We WILL get you home." He recovered, promise kept, and calls his caregivers 鈥渞ock stars.鈥
- a variation on standard shift huddles to provide positivity to the team. One nurse said, it鈥檚 a 鈥渢ime of camaraderie and we鈥檙e all kind of rallying together and checking in on one another and making sure we鈥檙e taking care of ourselves, as well as taking care of everybody else.鈥
- to the ear of a woman dying from COVID-19 so she could hear daughter鈥檚 voice telling her how much she loved her.
- A health provider and community food bank in Cleveland have partnered to deliver free fresh produce to community members in need.
- Two musically gifted Mayo Clinic surgeons sat at a piano and recorded an instant viral video 鈥 performing John Lennon鈥檚 鈥淚magine鈥 to lift patients鈥 spirits.
- And in my hometown last week, our COVID-19 unit at Saint Luke鈥檚 Hospital of Kansas City participated in an inspirational 鈥渃ookie train,鈥 where teams of nurses sent gifts of cookies from one health system to another, all around the metro 鈥攕howing that we鈥檙e not competitors now. We鈥檙e all in this together.
We know there are thousands more stories just like these all around the country, and we want you to please share yours. Right now, we want 鈥 and need 鈥 to hear and see the many inspirational ways you are showing that no virus can defeat the human spirit. Because we are stronger than this monumental moment in history, and we are not giving up the fight.