What a year it has been!

As 2020 comes to a close, I wanted to share our gratitude to the island community. We have asked so much of you and it has been a challenging year in so many ways, but the spirit and generosity we have witnessed has given us strength and heartened our workforce as we have responded to the pandemic. You have supported us and supported one another through this challenging time.

The prevention guidelines we have asked the community to follow – wearing masks, staying physically distant, refraining from large gatherings and staying home when possible – all of that has made life difficult. It’s not fun to do these things and it takes away from what we enjoy about life and our island. But we understand the importance of implementing these precautions, and we thank all of you for taking it to heart and taking it seriously.

As I look back to the spring of 2020, there were so many occasions when the community was there for its hospital. When we asked for donations of PPE, you were there. When we put out the call for medical providers to join a reserve staff to be ready if necessary, you stepped up. When people needed masks, you got sewing. When businesses needed to adapt to keep customers safe, you did so. Both year-round and seasonal residents of Nantucket came together to make these things happen for NCH and for our community. (more…)

As 2020 comes to a close, we want to recognize the longtime employees who retired from Nantucket Cottage Hospital or left the organization this year and thank them for the many contributions they have made to the health and wellness of our island. Below they share some reflections on their years of service at NCH.

Annie Backus, LPN – Patient Care Tech, Med/Surg

I have worked here at NCH for 46 years! My first and only professional job. I started when I was just 19 years old, fresh out of nursing school. Green as green can be! Most rewarding has been all I have learned since beginning my career on Oct. 21, 1974. All the patients I have cared for, all the lives I have touched and all the people I have met including patients, staff and administration. Thanks for allowing me to be a part of the NCH  team and all my patients over the years who entrusted me with their care through several generations of families. From bathing the newborn to holding the hand of a dying patient, to monitoring of behavioral health patients and now COVID patients, I have seen and done so much, but now it is time to move into my next chapter.  What a journey it has been.   See you at the beach! (more…)

How Pieces of the Old NCH Were Recycled and Reused in Healthcare Facilities Around the World

Prior to the demolition of the old Nantucket Cottage Hospital in 2019, hundreds of pieces of equipment, furniture, shelving, and doors – nearly everything that wasn’t moving into the new hospital– was salvaged for a good cause.

Nantucket Cottage Hospital partnered with another non-profit organization, Build Health International (BHI), of Beverly, Mass., to facilitate the transfer of these items from the old facility to hospitals and healthcare organizations around the world, including projects in Haiti, Sierra Leone and Lesotho. Build Health International’s mission is to promote global health equity by developing high quality health infrastructure to enable access to dignified and affordable healthcare in impoverished and resource-constrained regions of the world.

We recently heard from the Build Health International team regarding its various projects that were able to utilize items from the old Nantucket Cottage Hospital facility, and they include: (more…)

The Nantucket Cottage Medical Group at Nantucket Cottage Hospital will be holding one final flu shot clinic in 2020 on Wednesday, Dec. 30^th.

Flu shots will be provided by appointment only inside the physicians clinic at NCH. To book a flu shot appointment, please call 508-825-1000.

The state of Massachusetts now requires influenza immunization for all children 6 months of age or older who are attending Massachusetts child care, pre-school, kindergarten, K-12, and colleges and universities. The new vaccine requirement is an important step to reduce flu-related illness and the overall impact of respiratory illness during the COVID-19 pandemic. Students will be expected to have received a flu vaccine by December 31, 2020.

• What: Final flu shot clinic of 2020

• Where: Nantucket Cottage Hospital, 57 Prospect Street

• When: Wednesday, Dec. 30^th, 12 p.m. to 4 p.m.

• How: By appointment only. Call 508-825-1000

Early this morning, Emergency Department Physician Assistant Maria Carey became the first person to receive the COVID-19 vaccine at Nantucket Cottage Hospital. This is a monumental day in our fight against the pandemic. The vaccine is the most important intervention that will help us bring COVID-19 under control and get us back to normal. Over the next few days we will vaccinate our first 40 staff members and will continue holding employee vaccination clinics until all staff who want to be vaccinated are able to do so. We want to thank the team that has pulled together to begin providing vaccinations to staff, and all of you for your perseverance over the past 10 months. We still have work to do and we must remain vigilant, but today is time to celebrate this important step in bringing the pandemic to an end.