Minneapolis nurse wins Rogers’ second DAISY Award

01/18/23 02:59:pm

Amanda VonFeldt, a registered nurse from the Minneapolis clinic, received Rogers’ second-ever DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses. The recognition event took place on January 17 in Minneapolis and was broadcast live on Teams to more than 100 viewers.

Amanda was nominated by a former patient who says their treatment would not have been as successful without her.

“I felt very comfortable around Amanda, and she was always available when I needed her,” the patient wrote. “She is very good at addressing both the physical and mental health concerns in a kind and compassionate way and really comes from a place of understanding.”

Upon receiving the recognition, Amanda thanked her team and leaders for their collaboration and support when caring for this patient.

“This award was not something that I ever thought I would get or ever expect to get,” Amanda said. “The whole experience still seems surreal since I was just doing what any other nurse would have done for that patient, and it was a team effort every step of the way. I take pride in being a mental health nurse and love seeing the impact that we get to make in all the patients’ lives. I look forward to continuing my journey as a nurse, especially within the Rogers system.”

Amanda, whose parents, grandparents, aunt, and uncle were in attendance to celebrate with her, was presented with a certificate, bouquets of daisies, a DAISY Award pin, and the “Healer’s Touch” sculpture. She also got a box of cinnamon rolls, which are in honor of Patrick Barnes, for whom the DAISY Award was created.

Additionally, the DAISY Award banner will be displayed at the Minneapolis clinic until the next winner will be announced in April. At that time, the banner will be moved to that location.

Congratulations to all the nominees

A total of 24 nurses across the System were nominated for this round of the DAISY Award program: seven from partial hospitalization and intensive outpatient care, three from residential programs, 13 from inpatient care, and one from Admissions.

Alexis Mitchell-Brown from Brown Deer inpatient care was awarded second place for a nomination from a past patient.

“The compassion, caring, and understanding that Alexis demonstrated during my stay at Rogers was truly amazing,” wrote the patient in their nomination. “I literally don’t have enough words to describe how much her care meant to me.”

Jill Beaty from Oconomowoc Admissions was named the third-place winner for a peer nomination.

“Jill is the glue that holds so many things together both for Admissions, as well as any RN needs,” wrote the nominator. “Every day she navigates difficult and complex patient situations to allow patients to access any level of care at Rogers. I have worked with Jill in many ways during my time at Rogers and I am always impressed by her ethics, hard work, passion, and heart.”

Terri Cohn, chief nursing officer, concluded the presentation by thanking nurses for all they do and for choosing to work at Rogers.

“Thank you for your hard work, dedication, and compassion,” Terri said. “You are making a real difference in the lives of our patients and helping to shape the future of healthcare.”

Please download the award presentation slides to read the nominations in their entirety and to learn more details from the recognition event.

Rogers is among more than 5,000 healthcare organizations and schools of nursing worldwide that are committed to honoring exemplary nurses through the DAISY Award program.

Nurses are nominated by anyone who experiences or observes extraordinary compassionate care: current and former patients, family members, fellow nurses, physicians, clinicians, and other employees.

Winners will be selected throughout the year by an internal committee of 17 members from various disciplines at Rogers. Employee names, locations, and programs are removed from the nomination. The committee is asked to vote for their top five, and a re-vote is taken, if necessary, to narrow down the top three.

The next round of nominations are open now. Nominations, including a detailed account of why the nurse is deserving of the honor, may be submitted at rogersbh.org/DAISY.