Samaritan Celebrates July 2022 DAISY® and BEE Award Recipients
Published on: September 1, 2022
Watertown, NY – Samaritan Medical Center is pleased to announce its DAISY and BEE Award recipients for July 2022. The DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses® recognizes exemplary nursing staff, and the BEE Award honors other outstanding staff members who support patient care, both at the hospital and all outpatient clinics.
Terri McNitt, a Registered Nurse at Samaritan Medical Center, received the DAISY Award. Patti Finnegan and Tammy Knapp, both Compensation Assistants, received the BEE Award. A grateful patient nominated McNitt. Finnegan and Knapp were nominated by Kim Smith, RN, Director of Nursing – Critical Care. A committee then selected them. McNitt was nominated for supporting the patient, Maria Rice, on three different occasions through labor and delivery. The patient described McNitt saying:
“She made my birthing experiences magical every time.” Rice added, “On Sept. 26, 2020 I gave birth to a beautiful stillborn baby girl (she had Turner syndrome) and from the start of my day, up until discharge, my team, led by Teri was exceptional. That day was easily one of the worst days of my life and she made sure I had absolutely everything possible to get me through it. I will never be able to repay her for what she has done for me on all 3 stays (December 25, 2018, September 26, 2020, June 3, 2022) but I believe in giving recognition and praise where it is due, and she absolutely deserves it. All of the staff on L&D and Maternity are exceptional and I would never go elsewhere”.
For receiving the DAISY Award – which is an international award backed by The DAISY Foundation – McNitt was presented a certificate commending her as an extraordinary nurse, a DAISY Award pin, and a symbolic sculpture called “A Healer’s Touch,” which is hand-carved by artists of the Shona Tribe in Zimbabwe. A larger version of this sculpture has also been installed in the Healing Gardens at Samaritan Medical Center in honor of all DAISY and BEE Award winners to come. It was purchased using funds donated by the Samaritan Auxiliary.
Finnegan and Knapp were nominated for the BEE Award by Kim Smith, RN, Director of Nursing – Critical Care, for collaboratively ensuring employee flow and information maintenance.
“I cannot nominate one without the other. Tammy and Patti are behind the scenes for ensuring employee flow and information is maintained. They both drop whatever they are doing to assist us as managers when we have a need for NOW. They demonstrate professional communication skills with all levels of disciplines. They never talk down to you or above you. They are experts in what they do and serve as important resource for each and every one of us.”
Finnegan and Knapp were each presented with a certificate, a BEE Award pin, and a gift bag with other tokens of gratitude.
Both awards will continue to be presented throughout the year, and nominations can be submitted by patients, families, or colleagues at any time. To make a nomination or to learn more about the Samaritan DAISY and BEE Awards, visit www.samaritanhealth.com/daisy-bee.
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About Samaritan Medical Center
Samaritan Medical Center (Watertown, New York) is a 290-bed not-for-profit community medical center, offering a full spectrum of inpatient and outpatient healthcare services. From primary and emergency care to highly specialized medical and surgical services, such as cancer treatment, neonatal intensive care, behavioral health and addiction services, and imaging services, Samaritan Medical Center and its team of healthcare professionals proudly serves the medical needs of our civilian and military community. Quality, compassion, and safety are the basic principles by which exceptional care is delivered at Samaritan.
About The DAISY Foundation
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. In addition to the DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses, the Foundation expresses gratitude to the nursing profession internationally in over 3,900 healthcare facilities and schools of nursing with recognition of direct care Nurses, Nurse-led Teams, Nurse Leaders, Nursing Faculty, Nursing Students, through the J. Patrick Barnes Grants for Nursing Research and Evidence-Based Practice Projects and for nurses participating in medical missions. More information is available at http://www.DAISYfoundation.org.