Karmen Voigt, RN, Emergency Room, was recently recognized as a DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses winner at SSM Health Ripon Community Hospital. The DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses® is 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. Patrick died at the age of 33 in late 1999 from complications of Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura (ITP), a little known but not uncommon auto-immune disease. (DAISY is an acronym for Diseases Attacking the Immune System.) The care Patrick 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 based on specific criteria to receive The DAISY Award. Voigt was nominated by a patient’s wife who wrote:
“My husband was in the ER two times in Ripon and was provided care by Karmen. She went out of her way to make sure my husband was comfortable. He could not get comfortable on the ER gurney. Because he was so uncomfortable and agitated, Karmen ordered a regular hospital bed to be brought to the ER to make him comfortable. As soon as he was in that bed, he calmed down enough to fall asleep. During a second ER visit, Karmen made sure before he arrived that there was a hospital bed in the room for him when he arrived. She remembered he was more comfortable in that type of bed. She also did a great job of taking care of him. She is a very calming person and also very caring. In his experiences, Karmen was the one to make sure he was the most comfortable. We really appreciated it.”
Voigt was recognized recently during a brief ceremony. She received a certificate commending her 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. “When Patrick was critically ill, our family experienced first-hand the remarkable skill and care nurses provide patients every day and night,” according to Bonnie Barnes, FAAN, president and co-founder of The DAISY Foundation. “Yet these unsung heroes are seldom recognized for the super-human, extraordinary, compassionate work they do. The kind of work the nurses at Ripon Community Hospital are called on to do every day epitomizes the purpose of The DAISY Award.” More information is available at http://DAISYfoundation.org.
