Carl R. Darnall Army Medical Center wraps up a week of celebration honoring past and current nurses during a fun-filled week April 5-11.
With this year’s theme being, “Nurses make a difference Anytime, Anywhere, Always,” the staff kicked off the week with a fashion show of past and present military and civilian nursing uniforms, modeled by staff members. Other events included an escape room, basket drawings, fun run and walk, a taco and waffle bar, and a relaxation and yoga room.  
Daisha Jackson, registered nurse, surgical services, CRDAMC, modeled a 1960s’ nursing uniform, the first time in her four-year career of celebrating Nurses’ Week this way.
 “I really think this was a good idea to show the historical context of how our profession has evolved throughout the years,” Jackson said.
Being a nurse has its ups and downs, but overall, it’s been a pretty rewarding career, she said. High schoolers, or anyone interested in changing career fields should explore a nursing field that suits them best.
“It wasn’t until the late 1800s that nursing started to evolve as a profession,” said Col. Amanda Forristal, chief nursing officer, CRDAMC. “Until that time, nurse care included laundry, kitchen duty, sweeping and cleaning. It was during the Civil War that the medical profession recognized that they needed to evolve the nurses to treatment of patients, primarily because of the war’s many casualties.”
The responsibility to make this happen fell initially on the hospitals, and over time it became the educational intuition as we know it today, she added.
Capt. Fernando Garcia, registered nurse, Army Public Health, CRDAMC, has witnessed many changes in his 15-year career as a nurse.
“Things have definitely gone digital and that change sometimes has an immediately good impact for our patients,” Garcia said.
Our clinics exercise amazingly great teamwork to help our patients experience better results from their visits and treatment, he added.