AHN Canonsburg Hospital holds tree planting ceremony
Karen Mansfield/Observer-Reporter
AHN Canonsburg Hospital held a tree dedication to honor those who died during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Karen Mansfield/Observer-Reporter
Dr. Chong Park, president of AHN Canonsburg Hospital, lays a plaque at the base of a birch tree planted to honor those lives lost throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.
A birch tree was planted recently on the front lawn of Allegheny Health Network Canonsburg Hospital, in memory of those who died from COVID-19.
Hospital officials and health care workers gathered in front of the tree for a brief ceremony that included a blessing and poem readings.
A plaque that reads, “In loving memory of those who are forever present in our hearts,” was placed at the foot of the tree.
The ceremony was held during Hospital Week to recognize the nurses, doctors, and staff who have been providing care during the pandemic, while also honoring lives lost. It was part of a system-wide event, with tree plantings held at other AHN locations throughout the week.
“(The dedication) is important because it will be a reminder of what we went through. It will help us remember not only the patients we lost, but everything we went through as a hospital and as a team,” said nurse manager Courtney Acampora.
ICU nurse Breanna Feldner said the entire hospital staff united to treat COVID-19 patients during the pandemic, and mourned for those who lost family and loved ones.
“Everybody stepped up and rose to the challenge. Patient care was the center of their focus and they really wanted to do what was best for their patients to make them feel better and to make them feel loved and feel connected, and help them get over the disease,” said Feldner, who called the past year the most difficult in her eight years of nursing.
“It was very heartbreaking to see all the loss that happened,” she continued. “The patients were in our unit for a long period of time, and we really grew to know them and we grew to know their families over the phone, so it was like losing someone you’d gotten close to. It was definitely emotional every time a patient passed away because of the disease.”