It's National Nurses Appreciation Week. Saint Francis Hospital is celebrating with activities throughout the week.

Scrub in and it’s into surgery for Josh, Schrissa and Regina.

“My job is to prepare the sterile field, to watch for contamination and to pass instruments to the surgeon and also to assist if need be,” said Certified Surgical Technologist Regina Lopez.

“Just make sure of patient safety,” said Registered Nurse, Schrissa Saine.

In St. Francis' 12 operating rooms, that see a total of 35-50 cases each day. Before, through, and after every operation, a nurse is at the patient and surgeon's side.

“They are God sends, they are angels. If you have ever been under the care of a nurse and had to have a nurse... you can't even thank them enough, said “Walk-a-Mile in a Nurse’s Shoes” Participant Martha Paul.

“A hospital can't run without nurses. In fact, the only reason that a hospital exists today is because patients need 24 hour a day nursing care,” said Senior Vice President of Patient Care, Debbie Saylor.

It's the first year members of the community have been invited to come here to St. Francis to "Walk a Mile in a Nurse's Shoes." And Saylor says it's all to let the public know what nurses deal with every day.

“To really celebrate the work and the efforts that nurses do through another person's eyes,” said Saylor.

“I just got to see the tail end of closing up a shoulder replacement and it's very interesting,” said Paul.

Not just a way of celebrating nurses, "Walk-a-mile" is also a way to peak the interest of anyone with a golden heart.

“We're having a nursing shortage and we can't have enough good nurses and I mean by good nurses, someone dedicated, someone that really wants to be there to help the patients,” said Registered Nurse Taunja Hickman.

Taunja said helping is her goal every day.

“If I've made one patient feel better then I've accomplished my goal,” she said.

Hospital administrators, people from the hospital's "partners in education schools," community leaders, and Representative Vance Smith all walked "a mile in a nurse's shoes," yesterday.