2011 DAISY Award Winners
2011 DAISY Award Winners
Here's a complete listing of the DAISY Award winners at Children's Hospital Los Angeles for 2011. Continue reading or jump to the winners by using the menu on the right.
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Among colleagues from the night and day shifts, Castrillon was honored in a surprise ceremony on Nov. 21.
“This is amazing and overwhelming,” Castrillon said, holding a bouquet of flowers, a DAISY Award certificate and the Healer’s Touch sculpture. “I’m so happy to be here and to be part of the team.”
She was nominated for being the kind of nurse that patients and families, as well as nurses, physicians and other members of the CHLA health care team recognize as an outstanding role model.
“Jody is an amazing nurse and a truly remarkable human being,” wrote Amanda Silver, RN, in Castrillon’s nomination. “In the two years that I have worked with Jody, I have not once seen her engage in a patient/family interaction without a genuine smile and desire to improve their situation.”
Castrillon routinely handles explosive situations with an air of calm confidence.
“I believe if anyone in the ED were asked which nurse has the most consistently positive attitude in our department,” Silver said, “Jody would be amongst the most popular responses.”
Myrna Anotado, RN, (OR) Receives the DAISY Award for October 2011
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On Oct. 19, Anotado was honored in a surprise ceremony by her friends and co-workers. After wiping away a few tears, she thanked everyone for their support.
“Everybody here works hard and we really appreciate each other,” Anotado said. “I love you guys.”
The collective feelings of appreciation for Anotado among staff are mutual. Co-workers describe her as someone they adore, who is easy to work with and is always willing to go the extra-mile for patients. Plus, she does the schedule—a sometimes difficult task she completes with ease.
“We look to you for strength and guidance,” said Becky Gregg, RN. “We treat kids better because we have you. To sum it up, you are our hero!”
Gloria Verret, RN, CPN, RNIII (6W) receives DAISY Award for September 2011
Gloria Verret, RN, CPN, RNIII (6 West) is the winner of The DAISY Award for September at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles.
A few excerpts from Verret's DAISY Award nomination:
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... Some things you can’t teach that are unique to Gloria is her compassion for families and patients, her passion for nursing and the motivation and leadership she holds to push her co-workers to be the best nurses we can be. She is so humble and is always putting others before herself. Gloria is constantly commending others for their work and it is time to recognize and put her in the spotlight for all the hard work, dedication, love and care she puts into her career as a nurse, friend and fellow colleague.
… Gloria is a very wonderful person and nurse. She is a caring individual that likes to bring out the best in everyone around her, especially her patients.
… Gloria is so kind and caring for per patients. You can tell she loves her job and genuinely cares for her patients and coworkers. She is always willing to help and is involved in most of the committees on 6N. I can always go to her with questions or when I am in need of help.
Jennifer Huson, MSN, PNP, CNS, (PICU) receives DAISY Award for August 2011
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Jennifer Huson, MSN, PNP, CNS, (PICU) is the winner of The DAISY Award for August at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles.
On August 30, Huson was honored by her family and co-workers in a surprise ceremony.
A few excerpts from Huson’s award nomination, submitted by Christina Smith, RN:
Jennifer … is a clinical nurse IV in the PICU here at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. She is also the nursing director for the Dream Street Foundation. We are all extremely fortunate to have been able to draw on her broad education and multifaceted skills on for the past 10 years. She exemplifies the kind of nurse that not only nurses but the entire medical staff is honored to work beside. She has touched the lives of so many patients and families; they often consider her an angel.
… Close to Jen’s big heart is the Dream Street Foundation. This is how I know Jen best. She has been volunteering with this foundation for over eight years. Dream Street provides several summer camps to children and adolescents with chronic and life-threatening illnesses allowing them to experiences otherwise out of reach. Jen has been the nursing director for the foundation for the past three years. In this role she prepares and runs the infirmary for three different camps, each camp a week long … The care at camp is complex and involves administering chemotherapy, lab draws, hundreds of oral and IV medications and emergency needs as they arise. Her responsibilities as a volunteer camp nursing director are astounding yet she handles them with such grace and efficiency. The Dream Street Foundation and its camps would not be possible without her organizational skills, nursing expertise and her compassion.
… I feel Jen has contributed significantly to the nursing profession by her resolve to safeguard the high standards she demonstrates and teaches her genuine desire to improve bedside care, her commitment to the community through volunteer efforts and her compassion toward her patients and families both here at CHLA and in the community at large.
Jason Vargas, RN, BSN, CPN (PACU) receives DAISY Award for June 2011
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Vargas was surprised with news of his win early in the morning of June 9 during a routine staff meeting. Just after the meeting began, bedside curtains behind the group opened to reveal several members of Vargas’ family and members of the DAISY Award Committee, armed with flowers, hugs and gifts.
Vargas joins the ranks of the “Who’s Who of CHLA nursing,” according to Mary Dee Hacker, RN, MBA, FAAN, vice president, Patient Care Services and chief nursing officer. The DAISY Award honoring excellence in nursing care is now celebrated in more than 800 hospitals in the U.S. and internationally.
Excerpts from Vargas’ nomination tell the story in a very personal way: “Dostoyevski said, ‘The soul is healed by being with children.’ If ever there was a healer of the souls of families through the gift of providing extraordinary care to our sickest children, it is embodied in PACU nurse Jason Vargas.
A few excerpts from Vargas' DAISY Award nomination:
“I have had the privilege of working with Jason for many years and am always amazed at his gentle touch, his always going the extra mile to make a child comfortable as well as to comfort families. Two weeks ago, although this was a small gesture, it meant the world to this child. One of the children assigned to Jason was promised a purple (grape) popsicle by the MD. There were none to be found in the ASC. So Jason said, ‘Wait just a minute’ and he ran down to the main OR and was able to get one just as this child was loaded into a wheelchair. One might have thought he gave the family a check for thousands of dollars because of the smile and delight expressed on the face of this very ill child.
“Jason always does what he says and is creative in the multiple small gestures of kindness he demonstrates to make the entire family more comfortable. Whether it is getting a warm blanket for a nursing mother, or finding the ‘impossible to locate pillow’ to make a child more comfortable, Jason will find a way to accomplish his goal.”
Karen Van Wert, RN, MSN, BA, NP (Nephrology) receives DAISY Award for May 2011
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In a surprise ceremony on May 5 – surrounded by friends and co-workers – Van Wert accepted her award graciously in the midst of a festive spread of food, beverages and decorations. Van Wert now joins an elite group of nurses whom Mary Dee Hacker, RN, MBA, FAAN (VP, Patient Care Services and Chief Nursing Officer) refers to as “The Who’s Who of Nursing at CHLA.”
A few excerpts from Van Wert’s DAISY Award nomination:
“Karen has been integral over the past 30 years in the development of the kidney transplantation program at CHLA. She has been a total patient advocate from the beginning – creating procedures and policies around the transplant program to make it as respectful of the families and their time as possible, and as failsafe as anything involving human beings can be.
“She has also been vigilant to insure that the program met all standards and requirements of outside agencies to insure that this program would be available to our patients. Two and a half years ago, she began her concentration on pre-transplant activities. On behalf of the living donors she attempted to make their work up as smooth as possible and constantly keeps families informed of their status.
“She comes in at 5:30 a.m. on the day of surgery so the last thing both donor and recipient see is a friendly face. She has also taken on overseeing the patients in both hemodialysis and ID to insure that everything is being done properly to move those patients forward to their ultimate goal – life with a new kidney, un-tethered to a machine.
“Karen is also deeply respectful of both deceased donor families and living donor families. Her depth of knowledge in the area of transplant is amazing and she is a wonderful resource to the community and to other staff.”
Carolyn Waddell, RN, BSN, BA, RNC-NIC (NICCU-3 West) receives DAISY Award for April 2011
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Surrounded by friends, co-workers and her sister, Waddell was surprised on her unit with news of her win on April 1. It also was Carolyn’s last day before retiring after a long nursing career at CHLA.
A few excerpts from Waddell’s DAISY Award nominations:
“Carolyn has been the example of a DAISY nurse for many, many years. She has excellent assessment skills and can care for any patient. What makes her stand out is that she primaries the chronic patients. Carolyn has done this over and over again. She is patient and kind and cares for the families.”
More praise for Waddell: “Working with Carolyn has been a pleasure. She is a caring and compassionate nurse and is first to primary some of our chronic patients. With all her years of expertise and knowledge, Carolyn is a great asset to the unit. Her knowledge of caring for our fragile population is something we can only gain with time and dedication. Carolyn is a great co-worker always ready to help others in time of need and make sure her roommates are OK and caught up.”
Allie Dubon, RN (3 West) receives DAISY Award for March 2011
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Allie Dubon is the winner of The DAISY Award for March at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. Surrounded by excited co-workers and members of her family, Dubon was surprised on her unit with news of her win early in the morning of March 1.
Excerpts from Dubon’s glowing nomination:
"I believe registered nurse Allie Dubon exemplifies the core of The DAISY Award for extraordinary nurses, recognized by the super-human care she performs every day. There is never a day when she is grumpy or upset, she always has a calm, reassuring smile on her face that warms even a cold heart. Her compassion for the critically sick infants here in the NICCU exceeds by far any other nurse I have had the privilege of working with.
"She is never a complainer, she always accepts the sickest of sickest infants and will do so with the expertise of a senior nurse, but giving the same heart-felt compassion as you would have coming right out of nursing school... She lets nothing stand in the way of going the extra mile to provide even more support for the families of these sick infants. I have seen her so very busy, but noticing that there is a Spanish-speaking parent who needs a translation, stop what she is doing and translate for those concerned parents. In fact, she can be seen all over the unit translating for Spanish-speaking parents. But, to date, I have not heard her even once complain about the time spent away from the bedside.
"I believe The DAISY Award Committee should choose this nurse due to her knowledge, compassion and clinical skills."
Laura Corrado, RN, BSN, and Rosie Chavarria, RN, BSN, receive DAISY Award for Feb. 2011
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Chavarria and Corrado accepted their awards surrounded by supportive co-workers, who provided lots of homemade goodies for the ceremony.
The recommendation for this award came from parents whose child was cared for after heart surgery by these dedicated nurses.
Excerpts from their letter:
" ... we want to acknowledge the warm and compassionate care provided by two of your CTICU nurses: Rosie (day RN) and Laura (night RN). These two nurses were outstanding in every way. They were knowledgeable, kind and comforting, and while they were excellent in caring for our son, they also took the time to care for us, the anxious parents. We are forever grateful for what they did for our son and for us. I hope that you will pass this message to these two nurses.
"Back at home our little guy is running around, digging in the dirt in the backyard and fighting with his brother just like any other two-year-old. It’s hard to imagine that he just had open-heart surgery last month! My only difficulty thus far has been keeping him from those activities from which he is temporarily restricted (i.e., riding his tricycle, hanging from the monkey bars and wrestling with his brother) — it's a good problem to have."
Ann Alvarez, RN, BSN, receives DAISY Award for Jan. 2011
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Surrounded by friends and co-workers, Alvarez accepted her award with customary grace and modesty. Her husband was on hand for the festivities, having been sneaked into the unit to surprise his unsuspecting wife.
Alvarez now joins the elite group of 75 fellow DAISY nurses to be honored at Children's Hospital Los Angeles since the program began nearly a decade ago.
Alvarez’s nomination was particularly meaningful because it came from the parent of one of her patients. This parent wrote in glowing terms about the care that Ann provided for her son:
“This has been a difficult process for our family, as you all know. One of the best things that happened here at this hospital is Ann Alvarez. She is one of the most encouraging, supportive, nurturing and engaging nurses I have met here. Her mere presence is that of a leader, a person willing to go the extra mile.
“She has such an inviting but firm way of helping my son to push himself into healing. It’s a pleasure to watch her work her magic. When my son gets depressed and starts to shut down, Ann begins to find ways to bring him out of this stage. This is even with her very busy schedule [that] she makes time for him. She’s a Champion in her field of work and for that I’m grateful. I have met some great nurses, however, she’s the best by far to ME.
“I feel she is very clear and consistent with her reports about [my son’s] status while sharing the updates with me. She takes her time to make sure I understand what’s really going on with my son. If something changes she calls me to keep me posted on his needs. Because of the relationship with her, I feel my boy is in excellent hands with the BMT team.”