Congratulations to Inpatient Registered Nurse Joel Villasia, YKHC’s DAISY Award Honoree for the fourth quarter of 2023.
This is what his nominator (one of his patients) wrote:
“Joel came in to work with a smile. He never once talked about his problems or past sickness in comparison to how I was feeling. He seemed to be understanding, caring, and looks as he loves his job. When I had a problem, he addressed/took care of it right away. He looks happy to be serving YKHC and you all should be proud of him because he is doing a great job. Even though I know there are many patients, I felt like I was the only patient. He never once acted judgmental and just made me feel welcomed. We need more nurses like Joel. Thank you.”
The DAISY Foundation was established in 1999 by members of the family of Patrick Barnes. He was 33 years old when he died of complications of the auto-immune disease ITP. Like many families we see every day who go through this kind of horrific loss, the Barnes family wanted to do something positive to honor the very special man Patrick was. So, as they say, over a very “liquid” dinner right after Pat’s death, they came up with DAISY – an acronym for Diseases Attacking the Immune System. As they brainstormed what The DAISY Foundation would actually do, they kept coming back to the one positive thing they held on to during Pat’s 8-week illness: the extraordinary care he and they received from Pat’s nurses. The family was very impressed by the clinical care Pat’s nurses provided, but what really overwhelmed them was the compassion and kindness that his nurses brought to Pat’s bedside day in and day out. The nurses’ sensitivity made a great difference in the Barnes’ experience, and they wanted to say Thank You to nurses for the extraordinary care they provide patients and families every day. So, Pat’s family created The DAISY Award® for Extraordinary Nurses. What started out as a thank you from their family to nurses has grown into a meaningful recognition program embraced by thousands of healthcare organizations around the world. We are very proud to partner with DAISY as we have extraordinary nurses here at YKHC.
Congratulations and thank you, Joel!
Nominations can be made by patients, visitors, or YKHC staff. If you see or hear of a nurse demonstrating compassionate care and going above and beyond, nominate that nurse or help our customers to do so, by filling out The Daisy Award nomination form and returning it to Markel Stowell, Chief Nurse Executive, at markel_stowell@ykhc.org.