If you or a loved one has ever received medical care, you know just how important nurses are. As the nursing industry seeks to fill a projected nursing shortage in the U.S., The DAISY™ Foundation celebrates the profession by lifting nurses up.
DAISY originated in 1999 in memory of the extraordinary nursing care provided to J. Patrick Barnes during his eight-week hospitalization for idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP). Today, DAISY partners with more than 5,000 healthcare facilities and schools of nursing in all 50 states and in 32 countries. Over 170,000 nurses have been honored with The DAISY Award and its impact is well-documented.
“Meaningful recognition is powerful,” observes Deb Zimmerman, CEO of The DAISY Foundation. “Researchers have demonstrated that recognition can buffer the negative effects of burnout, and, unlike compensation and traditional incentive-based programs, recognition provides intrinsic value to an individual, fosters a cycle of engagement and reinforces desired behaviors.”
The most important tool a clinician can have
As a nurse practitioner, Deb knows nurses want to make a difference. “Nursing is the best profession on earth,” she shares. “There are so many opportunities to impact the lives of others.”
One way she honors new nurses personally is by mirroring what her mom, also a nurse, did for Deb: gifting a 3M™ Littmann® Stethoscope. Today, Deb marvels at the two 3M™ Littmann® Stethoscopes in her desk. She received one from her mom when Deb started her career as an army nurse, and she gifted the other to herself after she became a nurse practitioner in 1986.
“I keep it as a symbol of what’s important, of how many hearts and lungs I’ve checked. It’s truly the most important tool a clinician can have,” Deb says.
Paying it forward
Deb volunteered during COVID19 and was working with a community health worker who had to unexpectedly press pause on pursuing her nursing degree. As her colleague’s 40th birthday approached, Deb knew exactly what to do.
“I gave her a 3M™ Littmann® Stethoscope with lavender tubing. It was a symbol of my faith in her. I know she’ll make a great nurse.”
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