Hospitality Workers in Healthcare Day is a holiday that’s observed annually on March 6th and encourages all of us to show respect to those who work as hospitality workers in the healthcare sector. These individuals make and serve food in hospitals or work in non-medical hospital kiosks, such as the gift shop.

These individuals go to work every day and work hard to ensure that patients and their families feel at home—or as close to home as the hospital setting will allow. Although healthcare hospitality workers don’t receive the appreciation they deserve on a day-to-day basis, we can at least give them a thank you on this holiday.

The History of Hospitality Workers in Healthcare Day

As many people may already know, hospitality is a word that comes from the French word “hospice.” Hospice means “taking care of travelers,” and it was customary for locals to let travelers rest in their barns or in their homes during the Middle Ages.

During that time, people traveled quite frequently from one destination to another, sometimes over large distances, which wouldn’t have been possible if these travelers couldn’t rely on the hospitality of strangers.

Eventually, during the late 18th century, inns came into existence, and this spawned the beginning of the hospitality sector. During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, hospitality services started to be added to hospitals.

Now, gift shops and food service options are in just about every single hospital. These services, and the workers who operate them, allow patients to get a little bit of the comforts of home while they’re visiting friends and relatives in the hospital.

Unfortunately, while we’re absolutely clear on the origin of hospitality services in and out of hospitals, we’re completely unsure who invented this holiday dedicated to healthcare hospitality workers. We’ll continue to try to find the origins of this holiday, but until we do, what we’ve already written on the subject will have to suffice for now.

Observing Hospitality Workers in Healthcare Day

On this day, people should express their gratitude and appreciation to hospitality workers. This can be done by giving them a card, thanking them in person or on social media using the hashtag #HospitalityWorkersInHealthcareDay, or if you’re in a position of management over them, by giving them the day off.

Some hospitals celebrate this day by throwing a mini-party for their hospitality workers. Regardless of how this day is celebrated, one thing is certain: we all love hospitality workers and appreciate everything they do for us when we’re in the hospital.