SCOTTSBLUFF, Neb., – Regional West Medical Center will join hospitals throughout the country in celebrating National Hospital Week, May 9 through 15. The celebration will kick off Monday with cake and ice cream for all employees.

Nationally renowned speaker Margo Karsten, RN, BSN, MF, PhD, will present ‘The Spirit of Caring: To love what you do, to know that it matters, how can there be greater joy?” at the Gering Civic Center on Wednesday and Thursday. All Regional West Health Services Employees are invited and encouraged to attend.

National Hospital Day was originally conceived by a Chicago magazine editor as a public health care event that encouraged trust in the city’s hospitals in the wake of the “Spanish flu” outbreak of 1918, which killed more than 600,000 Americans. The first National Hospital Day was held on Florence Nightingale’s birthday, on May 12, 1921. Today, National Hospital Week, the nation’s largest health care event, is a celebration of the history, technology and dedicated professionals that make U.S. hospitals “Champions of Care.”

“National Hospital Week, first and foremost, is a celebration of people,” said Todd Sorensen, CEO of Regional West Health Services. “We’re very proud of each member of our staff. We recognize the important role each employee plays in extending a sense of trust to our patients and the communities we serve.”

Regional West Health Services, with over 1,800 employees, provides comprehensive and innovative health care services for the people and communities of western Nebraska and the neighboring states of Colorado, South Dakota and Wyoming. With over 110 active physicians, 95 percent of whom are board certified or board eligible, plus an additional 25 consulting specialists, Regional West offers care that spans more than 30 medical specialties. Regional West Medical Center, a subsidiary of Regional West Health Services, is accredited by The Joint Commission and is one of three Level II Trauma Centers in Nebraska