Nursing

IHI/NPSF announces DAISY Award 2018 honorees

Nurse Leader Insider, May 31, 2018

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The Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) along with The Daisy Foundation have announced the winners of the 2018 IHI/NPSF DAISY Awards for Extraordinary Nurses. The award, a derivative of The DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses, places special emphasis on patient and workforce safety.

The DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses is given to nurses in more than 3,000 healthcare facilities throughout the U.S. as well as 17 other countries. Nurses who received the DAISY award from their organizations between January 2016 and June 2017 were eligible for this 2018 international award.

“IHI’s partnership with the DAISY Foundation provides a way to recognize and honor the nursing profession and exceptional contributions to patient safety,” said Patricia McGaffigan, RN, MS, CPPS, Vice President, Safety, IHI. “All of this year’s nominees demonstrated extraordinary dedication to their patients and to providing safe health care, and this year’s awardees have particularly inspiring contributions that address behavioral health and equity.”

Erin Harlow-Parker, MS, APRN, PMSCNS-BC, of Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, the recipient of the individual award, was chosen for her work on numerous initiatives to improve the care of young patients in the emergency department, especially those in need of psychiatric treatment.

“Children with psychiatric disorders are at serious risk of harm, and they and their families often experience long waits in emergency departments while seeking appropriate placement. Erin has worked tirelessly to improve patient safety and quality of care for this at-risk population, not only in our hospitals, but across the state of Georgia,” said Linda Cole, RN, MBA, FACHE, Senior Vice-President of Operations and Chief Nursing Officer at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta.

The Surgical Care Unit (SCU) at Children’s National Health System in Washington DC, received the team award after the SCU team developed a solution for young patients in need of rehabilitation, especially burn patients. The areas for physical and occupational therapy on the unit were primarily in public spaces with little privacy for patients. The teams raised $50,000 for a dedicated gym space that features bright lighting, slip-resistant flooring, and other features to ensure patient-focused goals that can be achieved a safe and more private environment. The team developed this solution after caring for a severely burned and traumatized teenaged patient in 2016. While rehabilitation began right away, the patient’s stress, pain levels, and worry over her physical appearance often led to her refusal to participate in therapy outside of her room.

“This award exemplifies the compassion and tireless dedication of all of our nurses at Children’s National,” said Kathleen Chavanu Gorman, MSN, RN, FAAN, Executive Vice President of Patient Care Services and Chief Operating Officer. “I am so impressed with the SCU team’s ability to address the physical and emotional needs of this patient and all of the patients and families they care for every day. They not only identified the underlying global patient care need, but brought it to the next level by finding a solution that benefits all children being cared for on their unit.”

The awards program is now in its fourth year, although the 2018 honorees are the first chosen since NPSF merged with IHI in 2017.

For more information about The DAISY Foundation, visit the Daisy Foundation. For updates about the award and IHI/NPSF, visit http://www.ihi.org/patientsafety.
 



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