In an event Friday, May 9, WellSpan Health celebrated Lebanon philanthropists Ed and Jeanne Arnold by unveiling an honor wall for the couple at WellSpan Good Samaritan Hospital in recognition of a $1.5 million gift by the couple for a nursing innovation center.
The Arnold’s donation made possible the Jeanne Donlevy Arnold Center for Nursing Innovation at WellSpan Good Samaritan Hospital.
According to WellSpan, the center focuses on selecting and testing innovative care delivery models to help us reimagine the care delivery continuum so care can be accessed anywhere, anytime.
Opening up the ceremony, Valerie Adams, vice president of patient care services and chief nursing officer at Good Samaritan, thanked guests for coming out to the event held as part of Nurses Week celebrations.
Next, Adams handed the mic over to Kasey Paulus, executive vice president and chief operating officer of WellSpan Health, who said it was an honor to address attendees as they gathered to celebrate a significant milestone in the health system’s journey toward nursing excellence.
“This moment is not just a recognition of our achievements, but a testament to the dedication and hard work of our team, the support of our local community, and the vision of our health system,” said Paulus.
Paulus introduced state Rep. John Schlegel, who presented a certificate of recognition to WellSpan Good Samaritan Hospital for the occasion.
Paulus then explained more about why the nursing center was important. She said that the nursing gap just in the WellSpan system could grow to nearly 900 nurses by 2033 due to workforce shortages and increasing need for patient care as the population ages.
“This challenges requires us to rethink how we work, the roles that we need, and how technology can help us to meet the needs of the future,” she said. “To be successful, we must consider how we leverage people, process, and technology together to address some of our most complex challenges.”
Paulus said WellSpan’s goal is to become a national leader in nursing innovation, and the $1.5 million donation from Ed and Jeanne Arnold is a reflection that they share this vision to advance nursing excellence through innovation.
Paulus then introduced attendees to a “familiar face in this community,” Patty Donley, senior vice president and chief nursing executive at WellSpan Health, who began her career more than three decades ago at WellSpan Good Samaritan as a volunteer assisting nurses and most recently served as the hospital’s president before being promoted to senior vice president and systemwide chief nursing executive for WellSpan Health earlier this year.
Read More: WellSpan appoints Patty Donley as new chief nursing executive for the system
“For over 30 years I’ve had the privilege of serving as a nurse and leader here in the Lebanon community and specifically here at Good Samaritan Hospital, and several of those years were under the leadership of Jeanne Arnold,” said Donley.
Donley said that Arnold, a past chief nursing officer at Good Samaritan, was ahead of her time.
“There were people from around the world coming to Lebanon to learn from her leadership and her innovation,” said Donely. “That’s the kind of leader that she is.”
Donley said nursing is more than a profession for her, and that leadership isn’t about titles.
“It’s about how she can help, how she can ask the right questions, how she can think differently, and support us in where we’re heading in the future.”
Donley called the Arnolds pillars of the community and said she was thrilled for all in attendance to see the unveiling of a physical representation of the Arnold’s support, “the physical symbol of the lasting impact that she and Ed are leaving through their support of the Center of Nursing Innovation.”
Donley told attendees she hoped they leave the event inspired by the Arnold’s generosity and true spirit of giving back to the community.
“From the bottom of my heart, thank you, Jeanne and Ed.”
Donley then welcomed Jeanne Arnold to address attendees.
Jeanne, wearing a nursing uniform and her pin from Rhode Island Hospital where she graduated, said that the happiest and most fulfilling part of her career was at Good Samaritan Hospital.
“We did some incredible things back in the ’90s and we were really more than cutting edge,” said Jeanne. “And it was basically to be sure that our nurses had jobs and that our patients got good care and that we worked across the continuum.”
Ed Arnold, former chairman of the Good Samaritan Hospital board, also acknowledged Jeanne’s innovation as chief nursing officer and a program she developed to lower readmission rate, and said that it was unbelievable how the hospital has continued to move forward.
“The hospital today is unbelievable how it has progressed, and I’ve been in some of the meetings with this AI process, which we all know is going to be important in all industries, and to see that this hospital is leading WellSpan, which is an extremely good organization, in the area of AI, I’m very proud to be part of it,” said Ed.
The event concluded with the unveiling of the honor wall.
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