2021 AWARD WINNERS

Sharon Smith

Sharon Smith

Sharon Smith

LPN

Licensed Practical Nurse II
Regional Pediatrics
Private Diagnostic Clinic

Award:

Award for Excellence in Nursing Practice, LPN
SPONSORS
Duke dept of pediatrics duke childrens combined
Congratulations to our 2021 Friend of Nursing Award Winners and Nominees
Duke private diagnostic clinic logo
Congratulations from the PDC

DNP, NP-C, AACC, FAANP

Sharon is an exceptional and charismatic leader who has played an integral part in transforming nursing and patient care services within her clinic. She consistently instills Duke’s values on a level that is simply remarkable. Sharon has worked endless hours making sure that staff training guides and patient education materials are updated and organized, and worked diligently with the nurse managers and leadership staff to ensure that processes were in place when her team was moving to a new facility. Sharon exemplifies our nursing professional practice model.

INTEGRITY

This superb nurse goes above and beyond to make sure that the patient’s experience is positive and meaningful!  She is well respected and admired by her colleagues, the providers and most importantly, the patients!!! She consistently acknowledges staff contributions…even the “little things” that make a difference in a patient’s overall health journey. She displays integrity in practice and promotes an environment that is trusting, respectful and safe! She also holds staff accountable for high quality and safe care within her scope of practice. One example of her high level of professional integrity was evident in her action to make sure that relevant staff received appropriate training and support when the team moved to a new location. She worked endless hours making sure that staff training guides and patient education materials were updated and organized. She worked diligently with the nurse manager and leadership staff to ensure that a process was in place for appropriate training and orientation to the new facility.

EXCELLENCE

This nurse demonstrates decisive and organic leadership ability. She is an exceptional and charismatic leader who is willing and able to challenge conventional wisdom! She has played an integral part in totally transforming nursing and patient care services within her unit. She promotes quality values throughout the unit, and she has worked collaboratively to implement programs and convene teams that continue to advance practice excellence. She also volunteers in several community and civic organizations! Two staff members recently shared that the unit would not be as successful as it currently is without the dedication and hard work put forth by this staff member! She effectively integrates objectives, opportunities and resources, she works collaboratively to ensure that all policies and procedures are accurate, thoroughly documented and consistently applied. She is working diligently with clinic and nursing leadership to build a solid foundation for future organizational growth!

INNOVATION

As a stellar and experienced nurse, she has worked closely with management to develop and improve unique policies and protocols. Most notably, she assumed the lead, working collaboratively with unit leaders, to ensure and redesign a unit orientation and onboarding process that has helped with staff retention, training, and overall satisfaction! This has had a domino effect in that the providers and staff have benefited from the outcomes of this endeavor, and most importantly, it has improved the patient experience!!! She serves as the unit IT/Maestro Champion, Joint Commission/Regulatory Representative, and she offers strategies to help with smooth transitioning and onboarding for new employees. She provides feedback regarding strategies, processes, and policies for lab and support services. This nurse is consistently the first and primary staff member to motivate the staff and cheer them on in their new adventures and challenges within the health care setting!

COLLABORATION

She serves as a Unit Champion and liaison for staff and physicians. She provides guidance and help in getting the resources and information needed to achieve optimal and high-quality patient care goals. She is trustworthy and accountable. She follows through on each and every task assigned to her. She seeks to help both the physician and the patient in any way that she can. She is also extremely resourceful in reaching out to relevant experts when faced with situations that are challenging or unusual in any way. The staff, providers and patients can count on this nurse to make sure that her team is covered, represented and included. She also aspires to make sure that all staff receive the assistance and support that they need. She provides holistic and comprehensive care for all patients and she is a super staff advocate!  One of her colleagues shared that this nurse ALWAYS works to promote team camaraderie and she demonstrates unwavering commitment to quality. She excels in developing team momentum, enthusiasm and pride!!!

CARING

A patient’s parent shared: I would like to take this opportunity to express my sincere gratitude about the professionalism of this nurse. She has worked with my child for the last seven years for well checkups and for sick visits. No matter what reason we report to the clinic for, she has a calming demeanor that automatically puts us in a more relaxed mode. She is professional and skillful when it comes to communicating with us and our child, and when she has to give vaccines, she does it quickly and skillfully to the point that my child tells us that she only wants this nurse to work with her. Once we had to pick up a prescription for our child when she was sick. It was very late in the evening, and many pharmacies were closed. This nurse took the time to help us call different pharmacies that were close to our home to find out if they were still open and if so, if they had the actual medication because she wanted to make sure that we did not make a trip for nothing. We were already stressed and this made such a difference for us!!!

IMPACT STATEMENT

As we strive to identify great nurses and role models who uphold the highest standards of integrity, excellence, innovation and collaboration, this nurse is the top pick for excellence in nursing by far!!!!

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Friends of Nursing Gala 2021

Friends of Nursing Gala 2021

Friends of Nursing Gala 2021