This year we may not have been able to participate in some of our usual traditions, but one we can celebrate is saying thank you to the people in our lives who have impacted us. As we look back, we all recognize it has been a year unlike any other. It’s been eight months since the WHO declared a pandemic. Those eight months may have seemed like eight years for many.
Those on the frontlines of this pandemic, like healthcare workers, have been impacted the most. Healthcare workers are here for us during some of the most uncertain and scary times of our lives. They are there for us during the joys of childbirth and well-child visits where we see how much our children have grown; the agony of waiting for news about a loved one in an uncomfortable waiting room chair; and the deep sorrow at the loss of a loved one.
Many people have healthcare workers on their thank you list this year, and rightfully so. While we’ve had our daily struggles worrying and caring for family members and friends, you have been there, worrying and caring for everyone else’s family members and friends.
Your sacrifices to care for others are more remarkable than anyone can recognize. We’ve heard some of your stories – the loss of colleagues, the extensive safety measures you go through when you get home from work, trying to protect your loved ones, or even sending young children to live with other family members, so you don’t expose them, not being able to hug your children for weeks or months. Some of you even volunteered to travel to another hospital in a different part of the country because they asked for help – leaving your own family behind and choosing to put yourself on the front lines of a pandemic.
But our thanks go beyond those who directly perform patient care, more than the nurse, doctor, respiratory therapist, EMT… we say ‘thank you’ to those behind the scenes too. What you do impacts patients as well – environmental services, dietary, unit administrative assistants, maintenance, volunteers, administration, and so many others.
There are no adequate words to express our gratitude. We’ve lived through a tough year and can only guess at how much tougher it was for all of you. Your sacrifice has been so great. There are probably many moments forever inscribed in your memory; some you may not want to recall.
We know there are still dark times ahead over the upcoming winter months; there will be even more challenges, even greater tests. We know you will still be there for us.
GOJO has worked closely with hospitals and healthcare facilities for decades. We have always known what an important role you play – and see it even more this year.
Although it has not always been perfect, we have tried to be there for you throughout these challenging months. Early in the year, we prioritized sending our products to the front lines of the pandemic. Our team members have been working 24/7 in 12-hour shifts and/or 6 days/week for more than nine months now, helping us support billions of handwashing, hand sanitizing, and surface disinfecting moments.
We have doubled production capacity across all of our operations, and, as of June, our infrastructure and supply chain investments have enabled us to ship more than one billion doses of hand sanitizer every week in North America alone. We do all of this to provide more peace of mind through our critical and beloved PURELL® products… so we can be there for you like you have been there for so many.
We won’t stop, and we know you won’t either. Thank you for all you do.