Arzella Pratt named 2011 Nurse of the Year
Published or Revised May 09, 2011
Ceremonies marking the 10th anniversary of the Lamar County Nurse of the Year were held Friday at Paris Junior College. The event is sponsored by the Paris Regional Medical Center, Paris Junior College and Chapman's Florist. It is held each year during National Nurses Week. The theme this year is "Nurses Trusted to Care." Deborah Larson Bell, RN, MSN, C-APN, was the keynote speaker. Bell is a Family Nurse Practitioner at the Diagnostic Clinic in Longview. In her talk, "Changing the World," Bell is the founder of Refuge International, a non-profit volunteer group that works to better healthcare and establish safe water in Guatemala. With assistance from the Franconia Mission of the Mennonite Church and the Rotary District of East Texas, Refuge International has been able to obtain 4 million doses of medicine to treat the Guatemalan children for parasitic worms. Working with Scottish Rite Hospital and Good Shepherd Medical Center of Longview, children who have need of orthopedic surgery have been brought to the U.S. and received surgery and treatment. Bell told those in attendance that eight teams of medical personnel, including nursing students, travel to Guatemala each year to deliver supplies and needed healthcare. "All humanity is of equal worth," she said. "God can use you if you are up and moving; don't be satisfied with the status quo; feel empowered and be the change that you seek," she stated. Marsha Putnam, PJC director of health occupations, introduced PJC President Dr. Pamela Anglin, who presented the plaque to Arzella Pratt, RN, as the 2011 Lamar County Nurse of the Year. Pratt is a staff nurse in the ICU at Paris Regional Medical Center. She is a graduate of the PJC nursing program and has been a critical care nurse in the Paris community for 36 years. She began her nursing career in 1988. PRMC Chief Nursing Officer Connie Murchison said of Pratt, "Arzella is quietly efficient, even in critical situations." Her co-workers said "Arzella is strong, confident in her skills, dedicated to her patients and their families, has a heart full of gold and loves God; she is always willing and able to help, and she takes special care of her patients as well as her co-workers." Pratt is married to Rev. F.T. Pratt, and they have three children and five grandchildren. Following the announcement and presentation of a plaque to Pratt, she was given a large bouquet of flowers, compliments of Chapman's Florist. Joining her in celebrating were her husband; her mother, Willie Mae Mason; brother, Elz Moore; sisters Ola Moore and Nacy Leeks; and her grandson, SaMarcus Pratt. The award was established in 2002 to honor and recognize the rank-and-file nurses in the community who do their very best every day to meet the health care needs of the community. Previous recipients of the award include Dara Munn, 2002; Theresa Emerson, 2003; Myra McNabb, 2004; Catalina Tabangcora, 2005; Brigida Rian, 2006; Vonda Wallace, 2007; Judy Reese, 2008; Erica Farmer Westbrooks, 2009; and Debra Margraves, 2010. They were recognized during the ceremonies.