May 29, 2024 – Patients and visitors to Nantucket Cottage Hospital’s Urgent Access clinic will notice several new prominent artwork pieces throughout the Anderson Building. This new artwork adds the finishing touches to the newly renovated and expanded Urgent Access clinic and was made possible with the support of Flowers on Chestnut and the Artists Association of Nantucket.

Two original oil paintings, “Nantucket Road” by Alison Smith and “Abstract #1” by David Lazarus, are on display in the waiting room thanks to a loan from the Artists Association of Nantucket, coordinated by Patty Keneally, President of the Board of Directors. “We are thrilled to loan these pieces to Nantucket Cottage Hospital, and we hope they bring some level of comfort and joy to the patients who need to visit Urgent Access,” said Tracey Sears, Executive Director.

A striking element of NCH’s new Urgent Access space is a wall of nine nautical flags spelling NANTUCKET provided by Michael Molinar and the team at Flowers on Chestnut. Molinar and his colleague, Ferhat Yuseinov, also provided design advice and hung each piece throughout the waiting room, hallways, and exam rooms.
“I’d like to thank the Artists Association for these beautiful pieces, and Michael Molinar and his team for their ongoing aesthetic guidance to Nantucket Cottage Hospital,” commented NCH President, Amy Lee. “Michael has been a dedicated volunteer at Nantucket Cottage Hospital for decades and was instrumental in the design process of the new hospital.”

The Urgent Access clinic underwent an extensive renovation this Spring resulting in a much larger space to meet patient demand. Urgent Access is open daily in the Anderson Building at 57 Prospect Street and walk-ins are welcome. Appointments can be scheduled through the Mass General Brigham Patient Gateway or by calling 508-825-1000.

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(May 13, 2023) The Hospital Thrift Shop reopened for its 95th year in business on Monday, May 13, 2024. The line stretched down India Street and wrapped around to Centre Street, with shoppers eager to browse through merchandise donated over the winter by island residents and visitors. Founded in 1929 by a small group of volunteers, the Thrift Shop sells affordable, recycled clothing and household items to benefit Nantucket Cottage Hospital. Since opening almost 100 years ago, the Thrift Shop has donated over $7.5 million to NCH. Visit HospitalThriftShop.org to learn more.

(May 8, 2024) Ellen Hope, LPN, received Nantucket Cottage Hospital’s 2024 DAISY Award.

NCH is proud to join hospitals around the world in recognizing nurses who make a meaningful difference in the lives of patients and families through the DAISY program. The DAISY (Diseases Attacking the Immune System) Award is an international recognition program that honors and celebrates the skillful, compassionate care nurses provide every day.

Nominations can be made by any staff member, patient, or family. Ellen was nominated by four separate individuals. Here are some excerpts from her nominations:

• “Ellen regularly impresses me with her capacity for compassion. She is an inspiration for nursing in primary care.”
• “Ellen is deserving of the DAISY Award not for one act, but for the care she provides every day.”
• “Our NP team in Family Practice rely on her daily and are so grateful for her effort, time and, most importantly, compassionate care.”

NANTUCKET, MA – Nantucket Cottage Hospital has once again been recognized as a ‘Top 100 Rural & Community Hospital’, according to a list published Thursday by The Chartis Center for Rural Health. This is the third consecutive year the hospital has been featured on the list, which recognizes outstanding performance among the nation’s rural hospitals based on the results of the Chartis Rural Hospital Performance INDEX.

“I am so grateful to the commitment and dedication of our outstanding team here at Nantucket Cottage Hospital, who have enabled us to be recognized for the third year in a row as a one of America’s top 100 rural hospitals – and the only one in Massachusetts I might add,” said Amy Lee, president and chief operating officer.

Now in its 14th year, the INDEX bills itself as “the industry’s most comprehensive and objective assessment of rural hospital performance”. Featuring a methodology utilizing publicly available data, the INDEX is leveraged nationwide by rural hospitals, health systems with rural affiliates, hospital associations, and state offices of rural health to measure and monitor performance across a variety of areas impacting hospital operations and finance.

“During an era of profound uncertainty for rural healthcare, the Top 100 rural hospitals continue to provide a unique lens through which we can identify innovation and inspiration for how to deliver high quality care to increasingly vulnerable populations,” said Michael Topchik, national leader of The Chartis Center for Rural Health. “We’re delighted to be able to recognize all this year’s Top 100 but especially the more than 40 first-time recipients across both categories. It’s wonderful to see so many new facilities join the ranks of our Top 100 alumni.”

“In a time when more than 400 rural or community hospitals are at risk, I’m proud to say that our hospital is not only surviving, we are thriving,” Lee added.