OakBend Medical Center, the only independent nonprofit hospital in Fort Bend County, will honor its nurses at its annual Patchwork of Life event from 6:30-9:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 12, at Texas Safari Ranch. Funds raised from the event will benefit Vision 2020, the hospital’s five-year $10 million fundraising goal campaign. Funds will also go to support the renovation of the fourth- and fifth-floor patient rooms. “We are creating a completely new environment of care on both floors,” said Alicen Swift, development director for OakBend Medical Center. “It will be mimicked after the ACE unit [Acute Care for the Elderly] that’s on the third floor.” OakBend’s ACE unit was designed based off of research that found patients who stayed in rooms with open layouts were more engaged in their recovery and experienced faster recovery times. Swift said OakBend patients that stay in the ACE unit have 40 percent shorter hospital stays. The renovations to the floors will create comfortable family gathering areas and a dining area where patients will be able to eat together in a community space. “Ultimately everything we are going to do [in terms of the renovations] is working toward creating better outcomes for our patients,” Swift said. The event will honor the OakBend Medical Hospital nursing team and feature testimony from a former patient’s family member. Live auction giveaway items include a trip to Tuscany, a wine and beer “stock the bar” package and a four-course Italian dinner. Sponsorship opportunities are still available and range from $2,000 to $10,000. Table and individual tickets, as well as chances to donate, can be found online. “This is an opportunity for the community to show support for the hospital, and an opportunity for the OakBend community to come together and celebrate everything we have accomplished and achieved together,” Swift said. “The success OakBend has had is because of our community, and this night is a great way for us to celebrate that.”