HURON — Huron Regional Medical Center (HRMC) celebrated National Nurses’ Month with a celebration on Thursday, May 19, in the Legacy Plaza auditorium.
Erick Larson, HRMC president and CEO, kicked off the celebration sharing a personal story about when he was in high school, and his friend was injured in a motorcycle accident. “As a young person, I was trying to help my friend by being there in the hospital with him — the nurses didn’t just care for my friend, but they cared for me as well,” said Larson. “I got to witness what delivering incredible care looked like and it actually inspired me to pursue a career in health care and also to do my part in serving others and making a difference.”
Marlene Schaefer was the keynote presenter and shared many anecdotes from her nearly 55 years working in nursing, much of which were spent as a maternity nurse at HRMC. Schafer also shared with attendees that she chose to work in health care because of personal experience with her mother’s hospitalization while she was young.
HRMC kicked off the hospital’s participation in the Daisy Awards, which is an international recognition program that honors and celebrates the skillful, compassionate care nurses provide every day.
The DAISY (Diseases Attacking the Immune System) program was created by the family of Patrick Barnes, who died from complications from an auto-immune disease when he was 33 years old, to honor his memory and recognize nurses who provide compassion and kindness — above and beyond good clinical care.
Several nurses were nominated using patient comments from surveys received over the last year, including Margie Caviezel, Holly Traen, Nancy Hofer, Ethan Comes, Stacy Quam, Janice Christensen and Katie Deniger. Each of these nominees received a DAISY Nominee Pin.
HRMC’s first DAISY Award winner is Kim Daly, an LPN at HRMC Physicians Clinic. More than 15 different people recognized Kim by name with comments like: she listens and cares, we love nurse Kim Daly, she is wonderful, very nice, kind and helpful.
Going forward, HRMC will celebrate a DAISY award nominees and one winner each quarter. The department and shift of the award winner will get fresh cinnamon rolls to celebrate! Nomination forms are available throughout the hospital and nurses can be nominated by patients, staff or visitors. You can also nominate someone online at www.huronregional.org/daisy-awards. More about the Daisy Award is online at www.DaisyFoundation.org.
