Donor Appreciation Merit Awards; Peers Recognize Nursing Excellence

The newly established Nursing Initiative Advisory Board awarded its first peer-to-peer merit awards in surprise ceremonies to the awardees who were busily performing their duties on the hospital floor.

“The awards are made possible by the generous contributions of grateful patients and patrons of Saint John’s,” noted Mary Ellen Blakely, RN, MSN, vice president of patient care services. “Each recipient has received a check for $500 to use in any way they wish.”

The Donor Appreciation Merit Awards are given to registered nurses, licensed vocational nurses and clinical nursing assistants who have been nominated by their peers and who demonstrate the qualities that Saint John’s donors were inspired to celebrate: patience, kindness and intelligence at the bedside.

Nominated by their peers for clinical excellence, compassion, professionalism and positive attitudes were Shannon Hoppenstedt, RN, emergency department; Nancy Flores-Mahdesian, RN, ambulatory medicine; Florenda Ramos, CNA, 5South; Ellen Wickliffe, RN, 1West; Rosa Rodriguez, CNA, 3South; Elaine Truesdale, LVN, 3South; Joan Smith, RN, 5South; and Mary Tomassini, RN, critical care.

“Nurses are the heart and soul of the hospital," says Michael Minchin, member of the Foundation Board of Trustees. "Anything we do to keep that heart palpitating and enrich the lives of these angels of mercy is worth it. I am proud to be a strong advocate of this mission.”

Minchin, along with fellow trustee Paula Kent Meehan and longtime Saint John’s patron and volunteer Chuck Beck, helped award the first ever Donor Appreciation Merit Awards. Minchin, Meehan and Beck were among the first to champion the Nursing Initiative through gifts and advocacy of the concept to others.

Chuck Beck, whose initial support kick-started the Saint John’s Nursing Endowment, has a particular appreciation for nursing professionals and their work.

“I wanted to do something to benefit nurses,” he recalls. “I have the greatest respect for nurses, and my interests and Saint John’s needs dovetailed perfectly into the Nursing Endowment. I was honored to be a part of the Awards distribution.”

“I’ve been a patient at Saint John’s,” says Paula Kent Meehan. “I am so impressed by the nurses and their skill, and I am even more impressed by their support of one another in nominating their peers for these awards.”

In addition to presenting each awardee with $500, Meehan gave each nurse a necklace and matching earrings as a symbol of her personal appreciation.

Donors who contribute $10,000 or more to the Nursing Endowment may create a Merit Award in their name or the name of a loved one. This annual award will be given in perpetuity.

To contribute to the Saint John’s Nursing Endowment, please contact Ann Ventura or Luanne Magee at (310) 829-8424.

For more information about Saint John’s Health Center contact Saint John’s at 310-829-5511 or visit the hospital’s website at http://www.stjohns.org