Gratitude is defined as the quality of being thankful and being ready to show appreciation for and to return kindness. Over my many years of being a nurse and nurse practitioner, one thing I recognize is being thankful for those who work along side of me. Knowing that the person beside me has my back no matter what the situation, has gotten me through some very tough situations. Whether it’s been in my practice, my work as adjunct faculty, or in my role as an evidence-based content developer and provider, just knowing that I have colleagues working with me who have the same dedication and drive to do the best they can in any situation makes all the difference.  

Gratitude can be shown in many ways. How many times have you said to your colleague, “Thank you for working with me today, thanks for all you do and having my back.” Something so simple as just saying thank you can make the difference in someone’s day. It’s easy in our busy days to forget to say these two words. Little, random acts of kindness such as buying someone a coffee or tea when we see their energy fading can also make a big difference.

I know many of you will be thinking our organizations need to show more gratitude for all we do, and I can’t disagree. Now is the time for organizations to say thank you and demonstrate gratitude to their workforce. However, let’s not forget that gratitude starts within each of us. We need to model the behaviors we want demonstrated to us.

Nursing is a caring profession, and we demonstrate this everyday by the care we deliver to our patients. Now it’s time to show some gratitude and kindness by caring for ourselves and our colleagues. I want to personally thank each of you for the dedication to your patients, your colleagues, and our profession.  I am forever grateful to each of you for efforts and kindness you deliver each day.