INDIANAPOLIS – Rene Atkins has forged a career caring for mothers-to-be and newborns, and helping couples prepare for parenthood. Her commitment to patients and the nursing profession has garnered recognition of the Indiana Perinatal Network (IPN).
Atkins, a registered nurse at Franciscan St. Francis Health – Indianapolis, will be the recipient of the 2011 Spirit of Service Clinical Care Award March 11 at IPN’s state conference. The award recognizes an individual’s clinical contributions in caring for pregnant women and infant.
The Indianapolis resident graduated from Midway College in 1984 and has been on staff with St. Francis’ Women and Children Services for 21 years. She has been a certified lactation consultant for seven years, and has also coordinated the hospital’s Lactation Services program for the last 2 ½ years.
Atkins serves as a co-chair for the South Central Breastfeeding Alliance that provides community breastfeeding education and resources to healthcare workers and families.
She also has led St. Francis’ annual participation in World Breastfeeding Week, an event celebrated the first week of August that provides opportunities to highlight the benefits of breastfeeding and to make people aware of how we can lend support to mothers who want to breastfeed.
To learn more about Women and Children’s Services at Franciscan St. Francis Health, go to www.stfrancishospitals.org/DesktopDefault.aspx?tabid=134.
