From left, SCHHC CEO Raymond Hino, DAISY Award honoree Cindy Smith, and CNO Cori Valet.
DAISY Award Honors Extraordinary Nurses
BANDON – Cindy Smith, BSN, RN-BC, a nurse in the Med-Surg Department at Southern Coos Hospital & Health Center, was recently honored with the DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses at a ceremony in the hospital’s cafeteria.
DAISY Award honoree Cindy Smith with Chief Nursing Officer Cori Valet.
The award is part of the DAISY Foundation’s programs to recognize the super-human efforts nurses perform every day.
“Cindy is recognized for her professionalism, compassion, superior clinical skills, and outstanding ability to provide an affirming and reassuring connection with a patient during an inpatient hospitalization,” said SCHHC Chief Nursing Officer Cori Valet.
“Cindy demonstrated the exceptional nursing skills that inspired the creation of the DAISY Award,” Valet said.
Nurses can be nominated for the award by patients, families, and colleagues. Southern Coos Hospital & Health Center presents two DAISY Awards per year at celebrations attended by the honoree’s colleague, patients and visitors.
“We are pleased to award Cindy Smith as our third DAISY Award honoree,” said SCHHC CEO Ray Hino. “We are proud to be among the healthcare organizations participating in The DAISY Award program. Nurses go above and beyond every day. It’s important that our nurses know their work is highly valued, and The DAISY Foundation provides a way for us to do that.”
The DAISY Award was created to honor and recognize the outstanding efforts nurses make to provide extraordinary care to patients. The following nurses were nominated this quarter (names with asterisks have been nominated previously): Keziah Best, Tamie Farinacci*, Cindy Smith*, and Denise Wagner.
From left, Tamie Farinacci, Cindy Smith, Denise Wagner, and Keziah Best, this quarter’s DAISY Award nominees.
“It is important to acknowledge that every nomination received from a grateful patient, family member, or co-worker is a meaningful recognition of the nurse who receives it,” Valet said.
DAISY Award nominees and audience members at the award ceremony.
“When Cindy came into my room, it was like a whole new wonderful feeling about my future well-being, because she convinced me to stop worrying and to think in a much more positive direction,” said one of the three patients who nominated Smith for the award.
“She would go out of her way to bring me lemon tea and all sorts of helpful and wonderful things, including an art book …. She also demonstrated great clinical skill as well as an empathetic superpower. All in all, I feel you are lucky to have Cindy here and I am most fortunate to have come under her personal wellness rainbow,” the patient concluded.
Another patient commented that as a former nurse, she appreciated Smith’s level of care and empathy.
“She would come up with quirky lines to make you laugh. She had the best bedside manner that I have seen in years. She would sing different things but always kept it professional and positive,” the patient said.
Smith was hired per diem by Southern Coos Hospital & Health Center in 2023. She has worked as a nurse for 12 years through a per diem agency. She started her nursing career by earning her ADN (associate degree in nursing), then continued her studies until she earned her Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN).
Smith always wanted to be a nurse. When she was 5 years old, she told her parents she was going to be a singing nurse, “and that’s exactly what I am,” she said with a smile.
“I find no greater joy than when I go into a patient’s room and start singing and they sing along because when you’re singing you don’t feel sick at that moment,” Smith said.
Smith feels honored to receive the DAISY Award.
“It was completely unexpected,” she said. “It’s a big thing for the hospital to do and I’m so proud of them for doing something to recognize nurses.
“We have a great team here,” she added. “It’s a collaborative environment and we consistently give quality patient care. I love it here and I love coming to work.”
In her spare time, Smith likes to travel and enjoys entering contests. Among other prizes, she’s won six trips, including one to New York City, Puerto Rico, and Los Angeles.
Of singing, Smith said, laughing, “I can barely carry a tune, but I’m spirited about it.”
Cindy Smith, RN, proudly displays her DAISY Award certificate.
Each honoree receives a certificate commending them as an “Extraordinary Nurse.” Honorees also receive a DAISY Award pin and a beautiful sculpture called A Healer’s Touch, hand-carved by artists of the Shona Tribe in Zimbabwe.
Nominations can be made online at https://southerncoos.org/daisy or pick up a nomination form from one of the displays at Southern Coos Hospital or from the admitting desk in the hospital’s main lobby or the Multi-Specialty Clinic.
More information about the DAISY Award is available at http://DAISYfoundation.org.