Augusta Health celebrated Nursing Excellence Day, an educational and recognition day for outstanding achievements in nursing on March 17.
This year, 26 Poster Presentations on various research, process improvement projects and new programs developed by Augusta Health nurses were displayed. The annual Nurse Innovator awards were presented, and the 2015 Clinical Ladder participants and DAISY Award winners were recognized.
“All of our nurses at Augusta Health strive to provide excellent care every day to every patient,” said Marvella Rea, MSN, RN CNML, Vice President and Chief Nursing Officer at Augusta Health. “Those we recognized on Nursing Excellence Day have gone above-and-beyond our high standards in the areas of research, education, leadership and nursing excellence. I am in awe of the work they have done for our patients and our community, and am proud to work with them every day.”
The Nurse Innovator Awards recognize Registered Nurses who have demonstrated exemplary nursing innovation in the areas of Clinical Excellence, Nursing Education, Nursing Research and Nursing Leadership. This year’s Nurse Innovator Awards recipients are:
- Clinical Excellence: Sabine Dukes RN for her work on the implementation of the Early Warning System project, a best practice program that increases the nurse’s ability to recognize early warning signs of clinical deterioration through routine documentation of vital signs. The project has been piloted on the medical floor with plans for house-wide implementation.
- Nursing Education: Amy Markham RN for development of the ED Academy, which began as an orientation program for newly hired nurses and was expanded to a Continuing Education course that includes new hires, EMTs, and nurses outside the Emergency Department.
- Nursing Research: Becky Dever, RN for her research that led to the development of the RATED Scale, which predicts the possibility of violent behavior in Emergency Department patients. Use of the RATED Scale has led to a decrease in violent episodes in the ED.
- Nursing Leadership: Todd Dickerson, RN for his work on the development of the Emergency Department Preparedness Committee. Under Todd’s leadership, this group developed, educated and performed drills on Hazmat and Mass Casualty Incidents for staff. This group also implemented and participated in a regional Mass Casualty Incident drill in October. Additionally, the educated staff on the START triage system that helped them deal with two recent bus accidents.
The Clinical Ladder is a structured system designed to provide staff nurses career advancement and development while remaining in the clinical setting, providing direct patient care. The nurses who participated in the Clinical Ladder last year are:
- Clinician II
- Rachel Bell, RN—OR
- Michelle Blair, RN—Emergency Department
- Shannon Burke, RN—OB/Pediatrics
- Jennifer Carman, RN—PACU
- Elizabeth Clark, RN—Medical/Oncology
- Teresa Dinges, RN—Wound Healing Clinic
- Terese Gregory, RN—Wound Healing Clinic
- Sherri Harris, RN—PACU
- Courtney Houser, RN—PCU
- Diane Kline, RN—Operating Room
- Holly Lyons, RN—Outpatient Surgery
- June Mellinger, RN—PCU
- Robin Riley, RN—ICU
- Michelle Seay, RN—OB/Pediatrics
- Lindy Sheets, RN—Wound Healing Clinic
- Sabrina St. Clair, RN—Emergency Department
- Clinician III
- Brad Bennett, RN—Hospice of the Shenandoah
- Charity Boyers, RN—Cardiovascular Services
- Stephanie Brooks, RN—OB/Pediatrics
- Amy Brown, RN—PACU
- Michele Davis, RN—Infusion Center
- Sabine Dukes, RN—PCU
- Kristen Easton, RN—ICU
- Pam Flint, RN—Operating Room
- Virginia Gillock, RN—Cardiovascular Services
- Deborah Graham, RN—Wound Healing Clinic
- Tiffany Hartman, RN—Cardiac Cath Lab
- Martia Hevener, RN—Quality
- Cynthia Hoover, RN—Outpatient Surgery
- Beth Joyce, RN—Joint Center
- Diane Kennedy, RN—Infusion Center
- Kristin Leonard, RN—PCU
- Amy Markham, RN—Emergency Department
- Tonya Meadows, RN—Wound Healing Clinic
- Holly Parker, RN—OB/Pediatrics
- Tina Pitzer, RN—Wound Healing Clinic
- Jeri Pugh, RN—Nursing Administration
- Rhian Puliam, RN—Cardiac Cath Lab
- Nina Rhodes, RN—Cancer Center
- Tammie Rinaldo, RN—Crossroads
- Sharon Shenk, RN—Outpatient Surgery
- Tricia Shifflett, RN—Nursing Administration
- Eric Stajduhar, RN—Cardiac Cath Lab
- Kim Sullenger, RN—Home Health
- Clinician IV
- Stephanie Bolt, RN—Outpatient Surgery
- Heather Carter, RN—Endoscopy
- Susanna Carter, RN—PCU
- Megan Clayton, RN—Hospice of the Shenandoah
- Melissa Golladay, RN—Operating Room
- Cathey Hall, RN—Operating Room
- Roxanne Harris, RN—OB/Pediatrics
- Charlotte Maiden, RN—PACU
- Michelle Sprouse, RN—OB/Pediatrics
The DAISY program is a recognition program that acknowledges outstanding care to patients and their families. Nurses can be nominated by patients, families or colleagues. Those nurses honored with DAISY awards last year are:
- Laura Cullen
- Amy Carlineo
- Paige Hensley
- Sam Howard
- Ginger Johnson
- Erica Maddox
- Tonya Meadows
Augusta Health is an independent, community-owned, not-for-profit hospital whose mission is to promote the health and well-being of our community through access to excellent care. Named one of the 100 Top Hospitals in America by Thomson Reuters in both 2011 and 2012, Augusta Health has also been nationally recognized by HealthGrades as one of America’s 50 Best Hospitals for clinical excellence and patient safety for two consecutive years.
For more information about Augusta Health, its programs or its services, please contact Public Relations at 540.245.7329 or visit our website, www.augustahealth.com.
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