Williston, ND – Nurses at CHI St. Alexius Health Williston are being honored with The DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses ®. The award is part of the DAISY Foundation's mission to recognize the extraordinary, compassionate nursing care they provide patients and families every day.
The DAISY Award recipient of September is Brittney Pueppke, RN on MedSurg. Pueppke’s nomination letter from a previous patient family praised her kindness, patience and optimism during his 2-year old daughter’s hospital stay.
The nomination letter, written by Pueppke's young patient's father, thanks her for “taking the time to gain their daughter’s trust”. He goes on to say that Pueppke “even took time to pray with us.” He was thankful that Pueppke always kept his family informed and “stopped in for a visit” with his daughter if she was not assigned to her. He proceeds to praise Pueppke for coming to check on her patient's twin sister when she had heard that she was admitted with the same illness. He says Pueppke was “beyond helpful, professional and caring and bought each of my daughters to pick out a toy to help them feel better during their stay. She was always pleasant and optimistic.”
The DAISY Foundation is a not-for-profit organization, established in memory of J. Patrick Barnes, by members of his family. Patrick died at the age of 33 in late 1999 from complications of Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura (ITP), a little known but not uncommon auto-immune disease. (DAISY is an acronym for Diseases Attacking the Immune System.) The care Patrick and his family received from nurses while he was ill inspired this unique means of thanking nurses for making a profound difference in the lives of their patients and patient families.
Nurses may be nominated by patients, families, and colleagues. The award recipient is chosen by a committee at CHI St. Alexius Health Williston, to receive The DAISY Award. Awards are presented throughout the year at celebrations attended by the Honoree’s colleagues, patients, and visitors. Each Honoree receives a certificate commending her or him as an "Extraordinary Nurse." The certificate reads: "In deep appreciation of all you do, who you are, and the incredibly meaningful difference you make in the lives of so many people." Honorees also receive a DAISY Award pin and a beautiful and meaningful sculpture called A Healer’s Touch, hand-carved by artists of the Shona Tribe in Zimbabwe.
Said Bonnie Barnes, FAAN, President and Co-Founder of The DAISY Foundation, "When Patrick was critically ill, our family experienced first-hand the remarkable skill and care nurses provide patients every day and night. Yet these unsung heroes are seldom recognized for the super-human, extraordinary, compassionate work they do. The kind of work the nurses at CHI St. Alexius Health Williston] are called on to do every day epitomizes the purpose of The DAISY Award.”
“We are proud to be among the healthcare organizations participating in The DAISY Award program. Nurses are heroes every day. It’s important that our nurses know their work is highly valued, and The DAISY Foundation provides a way for us to do that.” Lorrie Antos, Interim President/VP of Patient Care Services of CHI St. Alexius Health said.
In addition to the DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses, the Foundation expresses gratitude to the nursing profession internationally in over 3,900 healthcare facilities and schools of nursing with recognition of direct care Nurses, Nurse-led Teams, Nurse Leaders, Nursing Faculty, Nursing Students, through the J. Patrick Barnes Grants for Nursing Research and Evidence-Based Practice Projects and for nurses participating in medical missions. More information is available at http://DAISYfoundation.org