(Philadelphia, PA) - The 1,600 nurses at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania (HUP) focus everyday on providing superior care to patients and their families. In recognition of National Nurses Week, HUP has planned a week’s worth of activities and seminars to encourage its nurses to spend some “quality time” on themselves by attending pre-scheduled awards ceremonies for clinical excellence and special seminars on health-care issues.

“Our approach to National Nurses Week is to honor the valuable role of nurses by presenting a series of ceremonies and seminars that recognize their many contributions and also advance their knowledge of topics that may be of special interest to them,” explained Victoria Rich, PhD, RN, Chief Nursing Officer at HUP. “We are committed to the highest standards of patient care, education and research.”

Note: Media only please -- these events are not open to the public

Editor's Note: If you plan on covering any of the events listed above, please register in advance with Susanne Hartman at (215) 349-5964 or susanne.hartman@uphs.upenn.edu.

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PENN Medicine is a $2.9 billion enterprise dedicated to the related missions of medical education, biomedical research, and high-quality patient care. PENN Medicine consists of the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine (founded in 1765 as the nation's first medical school) and the University of Pennsylvania Health System.

Penn's School of Medicine is ranked #2 in the nation for receipt of NIH research funds; and ranked #3 in the nation in U.S.News & World Report's most recent ranking of top research-oriented medical schools. Supporting 1,400 fulltime faculty and 700 students, the School of Medicine is recognized worldwide for its superior education and training of the next generation of physician-scientists and leaders of academic medicine.

The University of Pennsylvania Health System includes three hospitals [Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, which is consistently ranked one of the nation's few "Honor Roll" hospitals by U.S.News & World Report; Pennsylvania Hospital, the nation's first hospital; and Penn Presbyterian Medical Center]; a faculty practice plan; a primary-care provider network; two multispecialty satellite facilities; and home care and hospice.