Centralia, Illinois - SSM Health in Southern Illinois recently provided support to the South-Central Illinois Nurse Honor Guard, helping advance its mission of honoring the extraordinary service, compassion and dedication of nurses throughout our region.
Hospital president Damon Harbison and members of the regional SSM Health leadership team presented a donation to the South-Central Illinois Nurse Honor Guard last week, expressing their gratitude to Honor Guard President Susan Robbins and fellow members of their dedicated efforts to honor and remember nurses who have served our communities with compassion and distinction.
“Nurses are the heart of healthcare. They bring skill, compassion and comfort to patients and families during some of life’s most challenging and meaningful moments. The care they provide often leaves a lasting impression that is remembered long after a hospital stay or clinic visit has ended,” said Harbison. “The South-Central Illinois Nurse Honor Guard offers a beautiful tribute to these dedicated caregivers by honoring them with solemn memorial services that reflect the respect and gratitude they have earned through a lifetime of service. We are proud to support heir mission and help ensure that the contributions of our nursing colleagues are recognized and celebrated. Their commitment to caring for others is both an honor and a responsibility, and they deserve to be remembered with dignity, gratitude, and respect.”
Currently operating with a membership of 34 volunteer nurses, the Nurse Honor Guard provides tributes to the careers and legacies of nurses in the counties of Bond, Clinton, Marion, and Washington.
“To give a nurse, a dedicated professional, the recognition that is so truly deserved is our mission. The Nurse Honor Guard is a truly special and gratifying experience for any nurse that does it. I haven’t met a nurse that has participated that hasn’t felt a deep gratification from what we do,” said Susan Robbins. “Many of our nurses have worked with SSM Health, and now SSM Health has been so gracious as to give us this fabulous donation to help our organization.”
To date, the South-Central Illinois Nurse Honor Guard has performed 11 tributes throughout their four-county region and are currently assisting two separate groups in the southernmost part of Illinois to form their own Nurse Honor Guard chapters.
About SSM Health
Nationally recognized for quality and innovation, SSM Health is a Catholic, not-for-profit, fully integrated health system working to advance health equity and empower all people to achieve their full potential.
With care delivery sites in Illinois, Missouri, Oklahoma and Wisconsin, SSM Health provides convenient access to high-quality community-based services as well as world-class academic medicine, clinical trials and research studies. The organization’s footprint includes hospitals, physician offices, outpatient and virtual care services, senior care, comprehensive home care and hospice services, a fully transparent pharmacy benefit company, a health insurance company and an accountable care organization. As one of the largest employers in every community it serves, the organization’s 40,000 team members and 15,000 providers are dedicated to fulfilling SSM Health’s Mission: “Through our exceptional health care services, we reveal the healing presence of God.” For more information, visit ssmhealth.com or find us on Facebook and LinkedIn.
