I think many people can agree that COVID-19 has been incredibly difficult on everyone. It’s hard to believe that it’s been a full year since this virus has turned our lives upside down. But, we can all applaud ourselves for working hard on social distancing and wearing masks. It hasn’t been fun for anyone, but it has been vital in order to protect the vulnerable people around us.
We’d all be remiss if we did not praise the unsung heroes who have been working tirelessly behind the scenes to fight this pandemic – our nurses. In case you weren’t aware, May 6 was National Nurses Day, and this day is more relevant than it has ever been.
A major theme through this year’s pandemic has been, “Together Through the Seasons,” which celebrates the collaborative commitment of skilled nursing care facilities and their staff who provided compassionate care for the residents during this time. This has been especially true during the pandemic, where our team has been working tirelessly to ensure the safety of our residents who are a part of our family.
One nurse in particular to highlight is Lashawn Smith, who serves as a Registered Nurse (RN) at the Home. Her desire to serve people started as a child when she would play nurse and doctor with her sisters. But, ever since she was a child, it was her dream to become a nurse and help other people.
This dream became a reality when she received a full ride scholarship to attend Community College of Allegheny County through AGH and North Side Conference.
She is a soldier who cares for the welfare of her patients, their families, and her co-workers. Her favorite quote to live by is “Stand for something or you’ll fall for anything” and “These are God’s hands and we are only using them.”
She worked at AGH as a nurse supervisor for five years, Life Care Hospital as a nurse supervisor for 19 years and 5 years at Reformed Presbyterian Home, and now as a 3-11 supervisor.
Outside of her job, she serves as the President of Health and Wellness Ministries of New Zion Missionary Baptist Church and Judge of Elections. In addition, she served in the Army Reserves for 20 years including a tour in Desert Storm.
Hobbies she loves to do are cooking for her staff, decorating, baking, friends, going on vacation, and celebrating holidays with family. She is the proud wife of Mr. Joel Kempt for 17 years.
Smith-Kemp goals are to help RPH get a 5 Star rating, retire from RPH and become a resident watching the Y&R.
It’s simply incredible how one story of a nurse can really transform a whole community of people. More people are becoming aware of the incredible strength of nurses, and that is in part due to our awareness of the pandemic and how it has affected people.
If you know someone, even if they are an acquaintance, and they are working in the nursing field, tell them, “thank you.” It can either be through Facebook, in person, over the phone, or even if you want to be creative, you can make something for them. It might be a small thing, but it is encouragement like this that can send a positive message a long way for our heroes.