TOPEKA, Kan. — Some employees at Kansas hospitals spent a good part of the Christmas holiday caring for patients and providing comfort to families and colleagues.
Like other people, the coronavirus pandemic upended holiday plans and family traditions, but COVID-19 has stressed Kansas hospitals. Steve Morgan had an eight-hour shift as the chaplain on duty in a Wichita hospital and reflected on what he sees as colleagues’ sense of purpose on the Christian celebration of Jesus’ birth. Nurse Yvonne Murphy was feeling hopeful during her 12-hour Christmas hospital shift in Topeka after getting a coronavirus vaccine.
The holiday came near the end of her first year as a nurse.
