NORWAY — Nurses at Stephens Memorial Hospital will be honored with The DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses, part of the DAISY Foundation’s mission to recognize the extraordinary, compassionate nursing care they provide patients and families every day.
The DAISY Foundation is a not-for-profit organization, established in memory of J. Patrick Barnes, by members of his family. Barnes died at age 33 in late 1999 from complications of idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura, a little known but not uncommon auto-immune disease. (DAISY is an acronym for Diseases Attacking the Immune System.) The care Barnes 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 SMH 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.
If you are a patient or family of a patient who received extraordinary care from a registered nurse at Stephens Memorial Hospital, please visit wmhcc.org and click on the patients and visitors tab to nominate a nurse. If you would like to fill out a form, call 207-744-6023 to ask for one, or stop by the switchboard at the main entrance of the hospital to pick up a form.
