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.

December 16, 2020 – They’re here! The first shipment of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine arrived on Nantucket this morning. Tomorrow we will begin vaccinating frontline NCH staff members most closely involved in COVID-19 patient care and testing. Today 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.

After the birth of their daughter Piper at The Birthplace at NCH, Brian and Kate Sullivan shared a wonderful message of thanks to our team.

“This weekend our daughter Piper Grey Sullivan was born at Nantucket Cottage Hospital on Saturday Sept 26th 2020.  We are full of joy to welcome her home here on island.  Both Piper and Kate are home recovering healthy and happy and, are all doing well after the great care received at NCH. We can’t say enough about the experience we had this past weekend.  The new facility was a pleasure to be in, but the real shining star was the team of nurses, techs, doctors and support staff that treated us so well as our family grew. We are overflowing with gratitude to the entire staff at NCH especially the teams working labor and delivery over the weekend, including Rakeem Baker, Rachael Connealy, Jessica Douglas, Erika Noke, Ruthie Tonico, and Emily Wendelken. We were also supported by an amazing doula Sunny Daily who was able to attend the birth, helping complete the joyful experience for us.”

Nantucket Cottage Hospital patient Caitlin Marcoux recently shared her story of choosing NCH for her surgery and the care she received: 

“Dear friends, I’m safe and sound and convalescing at home. Surgery went well and I now the proud owner of a plate and 8 screws; fortifying my left clavicle ? Thank you for all the positive vibes ✨ prayers ?? and peace ? I’m so glad I chose to do this surgery and to do it here. The team of nurses at the Nantucket Cottage Hospital are FABULOUS, kind and open-hearted. I woke up in the middle of the night fretting about my decision to remain on-island and began doubting the skill and efficiency of our “cottage” hospital, but I have zero retreats now. I was treated with tenderness and compassion and didn’t feel alone at any time. Hats off to my awesome anesthesiologist who kept my nausea and vomiting to a minimum. Thank you to my pre-op and post-op nurses for taking such good care of me. ? And of course thank you to Dr. Monto and his assistant Abby, who have been on top of their game from the start. Now back to my cocoon of pain management and rest. ?.”

Thanks for sharing, Caitlin! Feel better.

Recognizing that providing compassionate care is a key hospital goal, Nantucket Cottage Hospital established an  annual prize honoring a staff member for extraordinarily compassionate care.

The Seinfeld/Hartmann Prize for Compassionate Medical Care will pay lasting tribute to a physician, nurse or any other hospital staff member who throughout his or her professional career demonstrates an outstanding level of compassion and care in their role at NCH.

The Seinfeld/Hartmann Prize for Compassionate Medical Care, a cash award, will be given each year at the NCH Annual Meeting in August, and the winner will be announced to the hospital and the island community at-large.

Nominations can be initiated by any patient or staff member who witnessed an act of compassion by an NCH employee. Learn more and nominate a caregiver by clicking here or call 508-825-8250. Nominations are due by July 31, 2020.