Extrarodinary Nurse Recognized at Thomas Hospital
Fairhope, Ala. – Shannon Bankester, RN, BSN, team leader for Thomas Hospital’s pediatric unit, was recently honored with The DAISY Award® For Extraordinary Nurses—her second time receiving this recognition. The award is part of the DAISY Foundation's international programs to recognize the super-human efforts nurses perform every day.
The not-for-profit DAISY Foundation is based in Glen Ellen, CA, and was established by family members in memory of J. Patrick Barnes. 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. 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.
“Nominations for the DAISY Award are submitted by patients or their family members, and from those nominations, a blinded review committee selects the DAISY Award recipient,” says Julie Rowell, vice president and chief nursing officer of Thomas Hospital. “Shannon is the only nurse at Thomas Hospial who has received the award twice, which is outstanding. As a team leader, she fosters the behaviors one finds in an exceptional nurse.”
Ormand Thompson, president of Thomas Hospital adds, “Receiving the DAISY Award twice is amazing, and it speaks to the exceptional care Shannon provides.”
In a formal presentation, Shannon was honored with a DAISY Award certificate, pin and a beautiful sculpture called The Healer’s Touch, which represents the bond between nurses and their patients. The sculptures is hand-carved, made of serpentine stone, and is signed by the Shona artist from Zimbabwe who created it. The economy and politics of Zimbabwe have been in turmoil for decades, however, through their work for DAISY, the Shona artists are able to support hundreds of people in their community. The DAISY Foundation feels that nurses are reaching around the world and impacting the lives of these very special artists, and the artists are filled with gratitude to nurses for this work.
In addition to the DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses, the Foundation expresses gratitude to the nursing profession internationally in over 5,000 healthcare facilities and schools of nursing with recognition of Nurse-led Teams, Nurse Leaders, Nurses Advancing Health Equity. More information is available at http://DAISYfoundation.org. To view Shannon’s award celebration, visit https://drive.google.com/file/d/1LvFkpNlVxX421xK-a969odbmh-YBQ-hK/view?usp=sharing.
