University Hospitals Frontline Workers Will Go to Super Bowl LV, a Gift from the Cleveland Browns
February 02, 2021
CLEVELAND – Three University Hospitals caregivers who are serving on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic are going to Super Bowl LV! They will be the invited guests of the Cleveland Browns, who are also providing airfare and hotel accommodations, as a thank you for their tireless service and exceptional care over the past year.
The Super Bowl tickets are being offered in conjunction with the NFL, which is inviting approximately 7,500 vaccinated health care workers, most from the Tampa Bay and Kansas City area, to the matchup between the Kansas City Chiefs and Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Feb. 7, 2021.
“Who is my favorite team? The best team is the team we work with at UH,” says Rana Hejal, MD, Medical Director, MICU, UH Cleveland Medical Center, who will be joining Catherine Wilson, a registered nurse at UH Cleveland Medical Center, and Rolando Mirandilla, a Parma Medical Center registered nurse, for the trip. “The amount of comradery we have seen across UH departments and locations is phenomenal. We get burned out, but we lift each other up,” Hejal says.
“We are so very proud that Rana, Catherine, and Rolando will represent UH’s amazing healthcare workers at the Super Bowl," says Dr. Daniel Simon, UH Chief Clinical & Scientific Officer and President, UH Cleveland Medical Center. “We are so thankful for the generosity of the NFL and Cleveland Browns in honoring our dedicated, resilient and compassionate caregivers who have sacrificed so much during this long and challenging pandemic.”
Mirandilla says he is a huge sports fan, but this Super Bowl will be his first trip to a professional football game. And Wilson, who is assistant nurse manager in the ER, says she is honored and excited, but she wishes her entire team could join her. “I couldn’t do this job without the people I work with,” she says.
This generous gift to UH caregivers is made possible through University Hospitals’ relationship as the Official Health Care Partner of the Cleveland Browns. The UH Sports Medicine team has been helping the Browns stay healthy on and off the field since 2013.
“We are incredibly grateful for the consistent and remarkable efforts of all of our country’s front line workers throughout the pandemic, including our local health care heroes,” said Vice President of Community Relations Jenner Tekancic. “While everyone has faced challenges this year, we have been honored to highlight many commendable individuals and groups during the 2020 season, and we are excited to close the season by thanking these three local UH representatives for their admirable work with a unique Super Bowl experience.”