Cheering, clapping and even confetti were appropriate last week as the American Nurses Credentialing Center notified nursing staff and executives at Sentara Obici Hospital that the hospital has achieved Magnet Recognition Program designation.

The designation recognizes hospitals for excellence in patient care, innovation in nursing practices and a supportive environment for nurses.

This honor is only given to approximately 8 percent of U.S. hospitals, and Sentara Obici is the first and only hospital in Western Tidewater to achieve the designation.

To give the uninitiated an idea of what a big deal the honor is, Vice President for Patient Care Services Phyllis Stoneburner compared it to the Academy Awards.

“This is just the icing on the cake to have the staff recognition,” she said. “It’s a celebration of and for nursing.”

Anyone who’s had the chance to observe the health care system closely knows that nurses are what makes it tick. The doctors call the shots, and there are many other workers and volunteers who help make it a success, as well. But nurses truly are the lifeblood of any health care organization.

To know that the nurses at Sentara Obici Hospital are not only the best of the best but are the best of the best of the best should be comforting to any resident or visitor to Suffolk who finds themselves requiring health care at Obici.

Not only did the nursing team at Obici achieve the designation, which requires many hours of dedication, but also the team exceeded national benchmarks by receiving “exemplar” honors in two areas: excellence in nurse satisfaction and in patient education on avoiding deep vein thrombosis, a life-threatening condition involving blood clots.

We congratulate the nursing team at Sentara Obici Hospital and look forward to more excellence in the future.