Extraordinary Nurses Honored by NPSF, DAISY Foundation

The National Patient Safety Foundation (NPSF) and the DAISY Foundation have announced the recipients of the National Patient Safety Foundation’s DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses. Michael Blomquist, RN, CCRN, a critical care nurse at the University of Kansas Hospital, was chosen to receive the individual award in recognition of his professionalism and patient-centered approach. The Emory University Hospital Serious Communicable Disease Unit (SCDU) nursing and interdisciplinary team will receive the team award for their care of critically ill Ebola patients.

The inaugural awards will be conferred at the 17th annual NPSF Patient Safety Congress, which takes place April 29-May 1, 2015, in Austin, Texas.

This award derives from the DAISY Foundation’s signature program, the DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses, which is given in more than 1,900 health care facilities in all 50 states and in 14 other countries. Nurses who had received the DAISY Award within their organizations in 2013 or 2014 were eligible for this new, national award, which places special emphasis on patient and workforce safety.

“NPSF is pleased to formally recognize and celebrate some of the most exceptional contributions to patient safety by nurses,” said Tejal K. Gandhi, MD, MPH, CPPS, president and CEO, NPSF. “All of the nominees are to be congratulated for their outstanding work.”

Mr. Blomquist, unit coordinator in the medical intensive care unit, was also a member of the hospital’s first rapid response team. He developed the Rapid Response Team Boot Camp, a course to help new members understand their roles, standards of care, and resources available.

“Impeccable communication is a key component of patient safety, and Michael has mastered patient-centered communication with his team as well as with patients and their families,” said Tammy Peterman, RN, MS, executive vice president, chief operating officer, and chief nursing officer at University of Kansas Hospital. “His commitment, passion, and expertise make him most deserving of this award.”

The Emory University Hospital SCDU nursing and interdisciplinary team is being honored for risky and complicated work of caring for four patients who were critically ill with Ebola virus disease (EVD). Members of the team include critical care and medical surgical nurses, along with a host of interdisciplinary colleagues. In addition to the direct care they provided, the team compiled their safety protocols and posted them on a public website. Nearly 20,000 providers have downloaded the protocols for their use.

“Team Ebola set the standard in safety for all of Emory Healthcare,” said Susan Grant, MS, RN, FAAN, chief nurse executive and chief patient services officer, Emory Healthcare. “Moreover, they made a difference for healthcare workers caring for Ebola patients across the world.”

In a written statement of support for the team’s nomination, Dr. Ian Crozier, one of the EVD patients treated at Emory, wrote, “I owe my life to the team at Emory, and the world has benefited from their bravery and innovative contributions to the knowledge of Ebola care. I cannot think of another team more deserving of this prestigious award.”

“We are so pleased to partner with NPSF in honoring these extraordinary nurses whose dedication to patient and workplace safety makes a great difference in patient care,” said Bonnie Barnes, FAAN, co-founder and president of the DAISY Foundation. “There were so many wonderful and inspiring stories, choosing only two recipients was truly difficult.”

The award was made possible by a generous three-year grant from Hill-Rom, a global provider of clinical technology and patient safety solutions.

For updates about the award and the NPSF Patient Safety Congress, visit www.npsf.org/congress.