CINCINNATI (May 6, 2024) – Members of The Christ Hospital Health Network IT Department Donated more than 330 books to the Level III NICU Wildflower Reading Garden for families. The book drive was organized by IT member Ashley McMurtrey.
Ashley was inspired by her fellow Sam Hubbard Community Impact Award nominee, Rose Geiger, NICU nurse at The Christ Hospital Health Network. Emily has collected more than 600 books for families of NICU babies. After she lost her daughter, Maggie, at 11 days old in 2015, she changed her career path and became a NICU nurse as she wanted to care for NICU babies. She started the Wildflower Reading Garden as a simple gesture to help grow the bond between parent and child during their time in the hospital.
After hearing her story, Ashley worked with the entire IT Department to collect and donate more than 330 books today to add to their reading garden. Families of NICU babies will take home a book of their choosing when they are admitted to the NICU. She has organized other community outings for her department including the Freestore Food Bank and A Child’s Hope Foundation with plans to work with Habitat for Humanity in the future.
“When I heard Rose’s story, I knew I wanted to help in a big way,” said McMurtrey. “TEAM is an acronym for Together Everyone Achieves More, so I asked my team for help. I’m very grateful to work with such an amazing team that always shows up. In just 4 short weeks, we collected more than 330 books. I believe in leaving a place better than we found it. At the end of the day, it’s not about what you have, or even what you’ve accomplished, it’s about who you’ve lifted up, who you’ve made better, and what you’ve given back.”
About The Christ Hospital Health Network
The Christ Hospital Health Network consists of an acute care hospital located in Mt. Auburn, a remote hospital location in Liberty Township, five ambulatory outpatient centers and dozens of medical offices throughout the region. For more than 130 years, The Christ Hospital has provided compassionate care to those it serves. Made up for more than 1,300 physicians and more than 6,500 team members, our mission is to improve the health of our community by providing exceptional outcomes in an affordable way. The Network was recognized by U.S. News & World Report as the #1 hospital in the Cincinnati Region and named to Newsweek’s World’s Best Hospitals list in 2024. It is also a Press Ganey Guardian of Excellence Award recipient, which recognizes top-performing healthcare organizations that achieve the 95th percentile or above of performance in patient experience.
###