This year, Paradigm was proud to recognize and celebrate our amazing nurses throughout the month of May! Traditionally a weeklong observance, in recent years, the American Nurses Association has expanded to National Nurses Month. This extra time enables us to help promote an even greater understanding and appreciation of the extraordinary contributions nurses make across the health care continuum.

For 2023, the organization continued its evergreen theme, “You Make a Difference,” to shine a light on the tremendous impact nurses make on the lives of everyone they touch. Each week in May, we highlighted a focus area to showcase the amazing things our fantastic nurses do and to provide resources to help support careers and lives.

Week One: Self Care
Nursing is one of the most rewarding fields anyone can enter, but no one says it’s easy. From critical care to case management, every specialty has unique demands and stresses that impact quality of life and mental health. Practicing self-care can improve both mind and body, making anyone better equipped to succeed. During Self Care Week, we shared practical tips and advice to help prioritize activities and actions that truly improve well-being, from getting enough sleep to seeking resources for mental wellness through programs like Trusted Health.

Week Two: Recognition
The second week was all about recognizing the work of Paradigm nurses who lead, excel, and innovate at work and in the community. Here are just two of the very many success stories that display life-changing work our amazing nurses do every day:

• Drenda Paulson, BSN, RN, CRRN: After a worker sustained life-threatening stab wounds and had significant complications, Drenda did a fantastic job identifying specialty providers and coordinating all aspects of his care, which continued even after he moved out of state. This injured worker did not want another nurse, as he was very close to Drenda and had developed a high level of trust. Drenda coordinated transportation and a primary physician for routine medication needs, meeting telephonically out-of-state and in-person when he came back in-state for ongoing care.

• Tracy Eastin, RN: When a retail worker suffered concurrent injuries, Tracy managed both files simultaneously. After learning she had suffered a two-part humeral neck fracture and needed a CT scan, Tracy completed all contacts, obtained approval, and coordinated the appointment for the next day, while reassuring and supporting the injured worker throughout the whole process. During her recovery from the first injury, the injured worker incurred a second injury to her right shoulder after another fall at work. Tracy coordinated treatment for the new injury, while moving the first one to maximum medical improvement (MMI) status and continuing to bring both referrals to closure.

Week Three: Professional Development
For nurses in particular, Professional Development not only has a positive impact on individual career pathways, but also contributes to better overall quality of care and service for patients and families. Learning Excellence at Paradigm (LEAP) is Paradigm’s primary learning platform, enabling nurses to continue receiving the most advanced and comprehensive clinical training in the industry.

“Paradigm is passionate about ensuring our team of nurses receives unmatched training, continuing education, and professional development to grow their own careers, while ensuring the highest level of care for those we serve,” says Lisa Hogan, Senior Director, Professional & Clinical Development, who leads Paradigm’s centralized training team. “Our focus on clinical expertise includes a blended approach to training that starts with comprehensive onboarding, builds upon expertise with a library of high-quality clinical education courses, and tailors learning with injury-specific catastrophic courses to enhance our ability to expertly prepare and implement care, and deliver superior outcomes.”

For nurses who specialize in catastrophic injury management, Paradigm requires yearly continuing education focused on catastrophic clinical topics. We offer unmatched education at our Catastrophic Summit, featuring world-renowned and industry-leading speakers.

Week Four: Community Engagement
Community engagement represents all the different aspects of help, support, and care delivered by nurses beyond a clinical or case management setting. Across the country and world, nurses from all backgrounds serve in vital roles as leaders in their organizations, on boards of directors, and even as elected officials. This is certainly true at Paradigm, where nurses not only make up a substantial part of our workforce and leadership team, but also play central roles and volunteer hours upon hours of their time in our philanthropic and community partnerships, including:

• Advocating for advancement of the ethical practice of case management as board and committee members for the Commission for Case Manager Certification (CCMC)
• Volunteering with local chapters of the Case Management Society of America (CMSA), the case management membership organization
• Serving on the Paradigm Kids’ Chance of America Community Team to help the children of seriously injured workers receive educational funding to attend college
• Donating time and expertise to the Alliance of Women in Workers’ Compensation (AWWC), an organization committed to creating positive changes in the industry

One more “thank you” to our nurses
We appreciate all of the incredible nurses we are lucky to have at Paradigm—they are truly the heartbeat of our organization. There’s still time to join the celebration and engage with our social media channels. Please like, comment, and share to show your appreciation for our nurses on any of our posts.

Learn more about how you can join the Paradigm family and an enriching culture of collaboration and support.