NurseWeek applauds Nursing's most radiant
with a night of awards and tributes

LAS VEGAS - There was no shortage of stardust at NurseWeek's second annual Nursing Excellence Awards.

Nursing's finest gathered Sept. 14 to celebrate 49 of its stars from across the 11-state Mountain West region at the Stardust Resort and Casino on the Strip. Forty-one finalists and eight winners were selected from among nearly 500 nominees from Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington and Wyoming.

Barbara Brown, Ed.D., RN, FAAN, regional vice president and editor of the Mountain West edition, opened the evening with grateful comments to Nurseweek for creating and organizing the event. "What really fulfilled my commitment and love for nursing was my first experience with the Nursing Excellence Awards three years ago in California [where] I saw the glory and the thrill and the feeling among the nurses who were finalists," she said.

Brown introduced Nurseweek CEO and founder Dennis Riordan, who told the story of the company's beginnings 22 years ago as a continuing education business for nurses.

The business was largely influenced by Diane Cooper, his late twin sister, and her career as a nurse, said Riordan, who started the publication part of the business with the help of his wife, Cle.

"Tonight is the night we are going to talk about excellence, and excellence in my mind is a just a little bit different than heroism," he said.

In remembrance of Sept. 11, Brown asked that the attendees take a moment "to pause and respect those who have made a difference but are no longer with us." The 11 nurses who died Sept. 11 were remembered.

Nurseweek Executive Advisory Board member Ann McNamara, Ph.D., RN, joined Brown on stage to commence "the most exciting part of the evening." Brown said a few words about the meaning of the event before announcing the categories.

"We are what we repeatedly do," she said. "Excellence is, therefore, not a single act, but a habit. Tonight, we honor our everyday heroes in nursing. These nurses are our joy and hope for the future of nursing."

McNamara and Brown took turns highlighting the careers of the finalists as they called them to the stage by category. Amid joyous outbursts of applause and cheering from colleagues and friends, the eight winners made their way to the stage one by one. All had a few words for their families, friends and colleagues.

Advancing the Profession:Janet Lamm Buness, director of nursing at Wrangell Medical Center, traveled to the event all the way from Alaska. "Thank you, everybody. It is a great honor to be here. I have been a nurse for over 30 years and have enjoyed every year of it. I think the profession has done a lot for me. I have enjoyed all the colleagues who I've met. And I thank you all very much," she said.

Clinical Care:Carolyn McGarvey, a staff nurse at University Medical Center in Tucson, was brief and gracious. "I just want to thank everyone and UMC. This is a great honor," she said.

Community Service:Christina Litchfield, a public health nurse at Missoula (Mont.) City-County Health Department, was the winner in this category, but was not able to attend because of an illness in her family.

Innovation/Creativity:With an audible group of cheerleaders in the audience, Sandra Clarke, administrative nursing supervisor at Sacred Heart Medical Center in Eugene, Ore., said, "I am a very fortunate woman and a very happy nurse. A loving husband, wonderful family. And, I work at a hospital in Eugene, where people are willing to give their time to be with the alone and the dying. Thank you very much."

In a touching moment, Clarke's daughter, also a nurse, cried out from the audience, "I am so proud of you, Mama!"

Leadership:Colleen Goode, vice president of patient services and chief nursing officer at the University of Colorado Hospital and an Executive Advisory Board member for Nurseweek, said, "Getting a leadership award is really very special. I think that all of us who are in leadership in this room took a lot of education to help us get to that point, but I am not sure that that is what it is all about.

"I think it is connecting and connecting with your staff. I have a group of wonderful staff and I am very proud of them and thank you all," she said.

Mentoring:A very pregnant winner, Vickie Maji-Takei, charge nurse at Presbyterian Healthcare Services in Albuquerque, joked, "I am glad to see that there are some labor and delivery nurses here.

"I have been a nurse for almost eight years now and I am so honored to be nominated in the Mentoring category, especially. I just love being a nurse. I just love it. And I am glad that I get to share that passion with new nurses all the time. Thank you very much," she said.

Patient Advocacy:Debra Kay Balido, director of performance improvement at Montevista Hospital in Las Vegas, accepted her award with great emotion. "It truly is an honor to accept the Patient Advocacy award because any nurse who is any good is a patient advocate. And so all of you here tonight I am sure are advocates for your patients, so I am very proud to represent all of you.

"I think the key to being a good nurse is to keep patient-focus. And if we keep that focus, we can only bring good to our patients and touch their lives in a positive way," she said.

Teaching:Carole Schoffstall, dean and professor at the University of Colorado, brought the evening to a close. "I would like to thank Nurseweek. I think it is a special thing you do honoring nurses in this way.

"And, I have been twice blessed by being a nurse and a teacher. But I think so many of you in this room are so fortunate in that there is no other profession like nursing that touches another individual's mind, body and spirit in such a unique way, and so I would say to each of you tonight, 'Congratulations!' Thank you," she said.