Aynsley Anderson Sosinski has always had strong caregiving genes. She knew from an early age that she wanted to become a nurse.

“I grew up among family and friends who were nurses,” she said. “I always loved hearing their stories about the patients they took care of.”

Joyce Williams felt the same pull.

“Since I was very young, I’ve always wanted to help people and make them better,” Williams said. “As I got older, I realized nursing was my calling, so here I am.”

LMH Health is celebrating Anderson Sosinski, Williams and all of its nurses during Nurses Week, May 3-9. The World Health Organization declared 2020 as the Year of the Nurse and Midwife, in honor of the 200th anniversary of the birth of Florence Nightingale, the founder of modern nursing.

Both Anderson Sosinski and Williams have been in the nursing profession and at LMH Health for 30 years. Before becoming a registered nurse 27 years ago, Williams spent time working as a nurse tech and has spent her career working on the medical/surgical unit at the hospital. Change has been a constant throughout the years.

“There was a time when you were able to spend more time at the bedside caring for patients,” she said. “As time has passed, I’ve seen that patients are sicker and the job has become more challenging, but I’ve learned to adapt and adjust to better meet my patient’s needs.”

Anderson Sosinski, a native of Canada, began her career 42 years ago in Calgary. She has worn many hats, including working as a nurse in public health, maternal child, neonatal intensive care and research project management. She now works as a community outreach and engagement specialist, providing childbirth and parenting education, wellness education and wellness coaching.

“The biggest change that I’ve seen in nursing is the expanded role that nurses provide in all areas of health care. Nurses are vital members of the health care team and in some communities, the solitary health care provider,” Anderson Sosinski said.

Change doesn’t always come due to new technology or procedures. The COVID-19 pandemic has made a profound change on the way that nurses care for their patients. Williams said that one way is through the use of personal protective equipment (PPE).

“Before the crisis, I would come to work and I didn’t feel that I needed to suit up head to toe in PPE to limit my own risk of exposure when caring for patients,” she said. “I now wear PPE to do my work and protect myself and them from COVID-19.”

Williams went on to say that though COVID-19 makes her job more complicated, there are silver linings as well.

“While this is a challenging time and things are changing daily, it makes me so much more appreciative of every little thing and moment in life.”

While LMH Health’s community outreach and education may have to adapt to fit a new normal, including an increase in online classes, Anderson Sosinski is ready to continue serving the community.

“I and my co-workers in community outreach will likely be expanding our education outreach to include providing information on prevention and management of the virus,” she said. “Down the road when a COVID-19 vaccine is ready, I may also have a role in community vaccination efforts.”

Despite the changes throughout the years and most recently due to the COVID-19 crisis, both nurses are driven by helping get their patients get healthy and back to their normal day-to-day lives.

“The most meaningful part of my job is seeing people make simple health and wellness changes in their lives and then reaping the often big health payoffs that even small changes provide,” Anderson Sosinski said. “Many of these folks are invigorated to move forward. That is so encouraging to me.”

Williams agrees with that sentiment. “I get great reward in knowing I can make a difference in people’s lives,” she said. “I get great joy in helping patients heal, making them feel better and getting them back home.”

Autumn Bishop is marketing communications manager for LMH Health, a major sponsor of Lawrence Journal-World’s health section.

Nurses work on the front line of health care every day, and LMH Health is celebrating them all during Nurses Week, May 3-9. Help us thank them for their commitment to our patients and communities. To share your encouragement, email social.media@lmh.org and we’ll share the love.