Three registered nurses at Avita Health System have been honored with The DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses. The award is part of The DAISY Foundation’s mission to recognize nurses for the extraordinary, compassionate care they provide patients and families every day.

The 2024 DAISY Award recipients are Patricia Hook, RN, of Bucyrus Hospital, Erin Postell, RN, of Galion Hospital, and Tori Hoffman, RN, of Ontario Hospital.

Hook was nominated by the daughter of a patient for the care she provided in the intensive care unit at Bucyrus Hospital.

“My father has dementia, and she understood how to talk to him to get him to do things she needed him to do,” the daughter said. “He can be a little rough sometimes, and she stayed calm and caring. He really liked her and would respond to her. Patti was also great with my mother when she was there visiting with my dad. My mother would not go eat, and Patti would make sure she ate and kept herself able to take care of my dad. She was just so caring to everyone that she was around. I can’t thank her enough for taking such great care of my father.”

Postell was nominated by the daughter of a patient for the care she provided in the medical/surgical unit at Galion Hospital.

“My mother was recently a patient at Galion Hospital with complications relating to pancreatic cancer,” she said. “During her last afternoon there, she was experiencing quite a lot of pain, and the doctor was expressing to us his concern that she may not last much longer and that to manage her pain, morphine would be needed. Prior to Erin administering it, my mother asked that all her children come to the hospital so she could see and talk to us.

“Erin had the foresight to know that giving the morphine would essentially knock my mom out and that she likely would not return to a lucid state again prior to passing away, so she waited to administer it unit the rest of the family had arrived and was able to talk to mom. Erin’s concern for her patient and our family gave us a gift for which we can’t begin to express our appreciation; she let us say goodbye.”

Hoffman was nominated by the loved ones of a patient for the care that she provided in the intensive care unit at Ontario Hospital.

“After meeting Tori for a short hour, I knew my loved one was in the absolute best care,” the family stated. “Tori was very thorough and compassionate, and upon arrival for a visit, she took the time to sit down and explain the plan of care for her patient and filled me in on what I had missed prior to my visit. She showed so much grace and gratitude for all of her patients on the floor and went absolutely above and beyond to make sure everyone was comfortable. Tori, we cannot thank you enough for being so kind and warm. You are a phenomenal nurse, and the world needs more of you. Although our loved one passed, I know that her stay at Avita was exponential thanks to Tori.”

The DAISY Foundation is a not-for-profit organization established in memory of J. Patrick Barnes by members of his family. Barnes 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 Barnes 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 patients and their families.

“The DAISY Foundation DAISY Award is our highest honor for nurses who provide extraordinary care, and these three nurses are very deserving,” said Kathy Durflinger, chief nursing officer of Avita Health System. “This year, there were 66 nurses nominated for this award, which speaks to the quality of the nurses at Avita.”

Nurses at Avita Health System may be nominated by patients, families, and colleagues by filling out a form online at avitahealth.org/daisy-award or at one of their three hospital locations. The award recipients are anonymously chosen by a committee of Avita employees and community members. There are specific criteria and scoring for each nomination. Awards are presented twice annually at celebrations attended by the honoree’s colleagues, patients, and visitors.

At the award ceremonies, Hook, Postell, and Hoffman each received a certificate commending them for extraordinary nursing. Each honoree was pinned with a special DAISY Award pin and presented with a beautiful and meaningful sculpture called “A Healer’s Touch,” which is hand-carved by artists of the Shona Tribe in Zimbabwe.

Submitted by Avita Health System.