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LEWISTON — Registered nurse Tamika Harris has been recognized as the Central Maine Medical Center DAISY Award recipient for the care she gives patients and the impact she has on those around her, the hospital announced.
The award is sponsored by the DAISY Foundation and recognizes nurses who consistently demonstrate compassion, critical thinking skills, passion about life, patient- and family-focused care, patient advocacy, support of all health care team members and are a nursing profession role model.
Harris works in the cardio-pulmonary department in the Thompson Wing of the hospital. She was nominated for the award by the family of a patient in her care, according to a news release from the hospital.
“(Harris) was assurance personified,” said the nomination story. “She stands tall in stature and taller yet in the calm, personable, professional and friendly manner in which she delivers patient care. (Harris) allayed my mother’s fears. She felt safe physically and emotionally in her care. Both (Harris) and the tech working with her had a special way of assuring my mom that everything was OK and that she needn’t concern herself with some of the less than glamorous tasks that they sometimes had to attend to in her care. Her embarrassment went out the window when they walked in the door.”
“If they are lucky, many if not most families encounter that special nurse that they trust completely to care for their loved one. The one that when they know that he or she is on duty that they can leave the hospital and not worry about their loved one, or perhaps worry just a bit less. For my mother and for our family, that special nurse was (Harris). She is to be commended for her exceptional work. May she serve CMMC proud for many years to come,” the story concluded.
The DAISY Award was established in 1999 by the family of J. Patrick Barnes, who died at 33 from complications of idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura. DAISY is an acronym for “diseases attacking the immune system.” The foundation is headquartered in Glen Ellen, Calif. The DAISY Award was created to show gratitude to the nursing profession, because the Barnes family believed that nurses are truly unsung heroes. The DAISY Foundation says the program “honors the super human work nurses do at the bedside each and every day.” The foundation also funds research for the J. Patrick Barnes Grants for Nursing Research.
