CGH recognizes DAISY Award winner

STERLING – Karen Hosler, a registered nurse in the CGH Emergency Department, was recently recognized as a recipient of the DAISY Award for extraordinary nurses.

An international program, the award is presented to nurses around the world who go above and beyond for their patients and demonstrate extraordinary compassionate care.

“We recently brought our 8-year-old daughter to the CGH Emergency Department for symptoms of a concussion that were growing increasingly worse,” said nurse Stephanie Waller, DAISY Award coordinator, as she read the award nomination. “Upon triage, Karen quickly recognized that our daughter was terrified to be there, and even more scared that she was going to have to go into the ER by herself, without her dad and me.

“Karen immediately tried to alleviate her anxiety the best she could. Throughout the visit, Karen kept coming back to check on us [always with a smile and soothing words], and she and other nurses explained how things worked to make the visit less intimidating. By the end, our daughter had taken medicine and had a CT without hesitation or being nervous. This was due to how great the nurses had been with her and how they went out of their way to make sure she was at ease.”

The nomination goes on to read: “I cannot say thank you enough to Karen for turning what was scary for our daughter into something that she now regards an interesting and overall pleasant experience. I know that nurses are so often undervalued by a lot of patients, but that never stops them from caring for those same people. Though Karen spent the most time with us, I do want to express my appreciation and gratitude for the hard work of all three nurses that interacted with us that night. Their professionalism, friendly faces, compassion and hard work meant everything to me, my husband and especially my daughter.”

The DAISY Award, an acronym for Diseases Attacking the Immune System, was established by the DAISY Foundation in California in memory of J. Patrick Barnes, who died at age 33 of an autoimmune disease. The DAISY Award continues to recognize and celebrate the outstanding professionalism and compassion that nurses bring to patients and their families every day.

Other CGH nurses nominated for the DAISY award during the third quarter included Sherri Bellini, Brooke Carroll, Jordan Clark, Sherilyn Corwell, Michaela Delagado, Candace Denning, Carly Ebersole, Alex Escalante, Cindy Fargher, Elizabeth Forster, Andrea Fry, Corrine Gibson, Lisa Gordon, Laura Hawk, Julie Huennekens, Shelly Lewis, Raquel Lilly, Tara Long, Tiffany Markel, Rebecca Mays, Michele Nelsen, Adrienne Obryant, Sara Ramage, Canaan Ross, Whitney Smith, Traci Snodgrass, Renee Stach, Julie Steffes, Angie Sullivan, Heather Trotter, Jan Valdez, Stephanie Waller and Siera Wetzel.

To submit a nomination for extraordinary nursing care that you, a family member or a patient have received at CGH Medical Center, visit www.cghmc.com/daisy.