Jacksonville hospital receives first-of-its-kind award

Published 5:19 pm Wednesday, October 20, 2021

It was a rewarding day for staff at the Christus Trinity Mother Frances Jacksonville Hospital as the team was surprised with the first-ever DAISY Team Award after a nomination from Jamie Maddox, chief nursing officer at the Jacksonville hospital.

The first-ever award, given to Christus Mother Frances Hospital in Jacksonville, was created as an extension of the DAISY Award to recognize and honor the entire team’s collaboration to provide better patient and family outcomes. The award is designed to honor collaboration led by a nurse, who identifies and meets patient and/or patient family needs by going above and beyond the traditional role of nursing.

Respiratory Therapist Asa Calhoun, Jr. said in the moment they were surprised with the award, he was thinking, “Wow, really? What did we do?”

“That’s the nicest thing that’s ever happened to me at work. Kind of felt a little unworthy,” Calhoun said. “So much love, dedication, and perseverance go into the care we give our patients, a piece of them always stays with us,” he said.

Director of Finance at Trinity Mother Frances Barry Lofquist said the COVID-19 pandemic has challenged the small hospital unlike any other event or situation in their entire career.

“Every associate has played an important role in the battle against this deadly virus. Although the DAISY Award is traditionally an individual award, she was so moved by and grateful for our team’s unwavering commitment and selfless service to our ministry, our patients and our community, she nominated our entire hospital for the Team DAISY Award,” he said. “As Administrator for CHRISTUS Mother Frances Hospital — Jacksonville, I have the privilege of serving alongside these healthcare heroes, and I cannot think of a more fitting way to recognize them for the incredible work they do every day.”

Assistant Chief Medical Information Officer for Christus Trinity Mother Frances Health System Jane Ragland said she did not know they would be receiving the award, but was thrilled to think that a group could get it to be recognized for their hard work.

“It is incredible that a group can pull together and achieve so much without thought of the reward and exciting to see there is a formal recognition,” Ragland said.

She explained that receiving the award during the COVID-19 pandemic makes it more rewarding.

“Our hearts and souls have been battered over the time of the pandemic,” Ragland said. “This award is a bit of a soothing balm to help with recovery. It is a privilege and honor to be able to work with this group of physicians, nurse practitioners, nurses, medical assistants, housekeepers, front desk staff, therapists, respiratory, physical, occupational, nutrition team, maintenance staff, security, office support staff,” she said.

“We don’t know what it will take for us to recover from the pandemic’s effects, but this helps us to persevere with good heart and attitude so that we may continue to care for the patients entrusted to our care,” Ragland said.

The amount of sacrifice that goes into caring for the patients and families that go to the Jacksonville hospital is a lot, Ragland said. “We have sacrificed individually and as a group,” she said, including staff who cancelled time off in order to work and cover the clinic and hospital needs. She added staff had to learn new roles as they managed the illness.

“We had to put aside our own stress and grief as we lost family members, coworkers and friends to not only Covid-19 but also to other things such as heart attack and stroke, motor vehicle accidents, acute illness such as pneumonia that was not covid-related,” she said.

Mary Price, doctor of Emergency Medicine and Trauma Care, said she doesn’t see it as a sacrifice and said she felt privileged in receiving the DAISY award as they’re usually reserved for nurses who exemplify excellence in patient care.

“I don’t think of it like a sacrifice- this is our job. We take care of patients, and this is what we agreed to do, so I don’t look at it as such. Some caregivers have sacrificed, however, particularly those who got sick from COVID or who lost family members,” Price said.

Price added that the stress of being a caregiver during covid is “very real.”

“Several times I cried driving home, due to the stress of events that transpired during my shift. Some of our colleagues have succumbed to illness. We are constantly under stress of getting sick ourselves — or worse, bringing illness home to our families. We have all dealt with the death of patients. We have faced shortages. I have seen staff stay late past their 12 hours when patient volume was so high the beds were overflowing. I have seen the administrators, including Jamie, Barry, Dwayne Coates stay late as well, helping us to find structural solutions to clinical problems and shortages. Overall, I have seen everyone step and play their ‘A’ game during the recent COVID spike. It is great to be recognized for this,” Price said.

While Christus Mother Frances Hospital-Jacksonville is the first hospital to receive this honor, it most certainly is far less common than the DAISY Award, which was created in 1999 by the family of Patrick Barnes to honor the extraordinary and superhuman work nurses do for patients and families every day through their compassionate care and dedication to their role. The DAISY Award is known to be the highest honor a nurse can receive. Today, more than 4,900 healthcare facilities and schools of nursing in all 50 states and 31 other countries and territories are committed to honoring nurses and healthcare heroes with the DAISY Award.