Lily Maxwell
Rutland Regional Medical Center is celebrating National Doctors’ Day by displaying more than 300 drawings from elementary school students.
The hospital has been receiving artwork from local schools for nearly a decade, according to a community announcement. This year, nine schools participated, and the drawings are being displayed in public spaces, staff breakout areas and clinics. You can see the collection online at photos.rrmc.org/Doctors-Day/Doctors-Day-2026.
This year, the hospital collected over 300 original pieces of artwork.
“Hanging 300-plus drawings takes a long time,” said Stephanie Czachor, medical staff quality and credentialing specialist at Rutland Regional. “Not just because of the volume of drawings but because we can’t stop ourselves from reading each submission and delighting in the creativity and heartfelt sentiments the students express.”
The drawings are a hit with staff, visitors and patients.
“It really is something to see all of these colorful and creative works of art posted throughout the hospital each year,” said Michael DiMeola, medical staff president and anesthesiologist. “Each drawing is unique, some are hilarious, but all of them are heartfelt and enjoyed by everyone at the hospital, including our visitors and patients.”
National Doctors’ Day is celebrated annually on March 30 because on that date in 1842, Crawford W. Long, a physician from Georgia, first used ether anesthesia during surgery. Doctors’ Day itself formally began in Barrow County, Georgia, in 1933 and became a national day of recognition in 1991 under President George H.W. Bush.
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