The November DAISY Award Winner is Samantha Johnson!

A program to recognize the care and compassion of extraordinary nurses continues at UHS with Samantha Johnson, RN, South Tower 5 at UHS Hospitals, being named the November winner of the DAISY Award! Samantha was recognized and presented with the award for the achievement, and enjoyed cinnamon rolls, a symbolic treat in honor of Patrick Barnes, whose experience inspired the award.

The South Tower 5 nurse was nominated by a colleague. In their nomination letter, Sam's colleague spoke about how she goes out of her way to support and help the staff on the unit and to provide excellent care for her patients. She is described as cheerful and always the first one willing to lend a hand. The nomination letter went on to tell a story about Sam's compassion for her patients. In the story, Sam had a patient that was in the hospital for a couple of months and was getting to be down about it. She went out of her way to cheer her patient up by giving him a fun wheelchair ride and bringing in a watercolor paint set for him to paint with.

"Her caring and compassion go above and beyond for her patients, as I have witnessed her put together little care packages for patients from the gift shop, buy birthday balloons and streamers for patients who are stuck celebrating their birthdays in the hospital and more!" said Sam's colleague. "This is only one example of the many times Sam has gone above and beyond for patients, and she is truly the type of nurse that exemplifies UHS standards. I only wish there were more nurses like Sam and I respect and look up to her as a co-worker and human being."

The DAISY (Diseases Attacking the Immune SYstem) Award is an international recognition program that honors and celebrates the skillful, compassionate care nurses provide every day. The DAISY Foundation was established by the family of J. Patrick Barnes after the Seattle man died from complications of the auto-immune disease ITP in 1999. During his hospitalization, the family members deeply appreciated the care and compassion shown to Patrick and his loved ones. When he died, they felt compelled to say thank you to nurses in a very public way. To learn more, visit DAISYFoundation.org. 

Started at UHS in April 2021, nurses are nominated by anyone in the organization - patients, family members, other nurses, physicians, other clinicians and staff - anyone who experiences or observes extraordinary care being provided by a nurse.

Nominations are submitted by using a form found on NYUHS.org. On this form, the person will be able to tell the story of why they are nominating the nurse, while also choosing which UHS Value (Compassion, Trust, Respect, Teamwork, Innovation) the nurse displayed.

If you have any questions, please contact Toni Nash at (607) 763-6896 or send an email to daisy@nyuhs.org.