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MICU nurse honored with DAISY Award by Heather Woolwine Public Relations Compassion, leadership and a willingness to work beyond reasonable bounds helped designate Beth Lingerfelt, R.N., MICU, the winner of the March MUSC DAISY (Diseases Attacking the Immune System) Award.   In nominating Lingerfelt, Deidra Huckabee, R.N., MICU, recalls a “very busy day in MICU” where Lingerfelt was the charge nurse and spotted a severely ill patient who may not have survived without her intervention.   Congratulating registered nurse Beth Lingerfelt, center, with her DAISY Award are Sharon DeGrace, left, Dr. Jay Heidecker, Deidre Huckabee, second from right, and MICU nurse manager Janet Byrne. “We had several extremely sick patients and the staff was aggressively utilizing Beth as a free float charge to aid them in their care. She performed her duties in a timely and proficient manner while still carrying the code pager,” Huckabee wrote in nominating her. “One younger patient’s condition was deteriorating rapidly and the doctors on the unit were occupied with two new admissions we had recently received. Beth was very concerned for this patient and notified the physicians of his decline. She then went properly up the chain of command, finally coming to the decision to phone the attending physician. She voiced her concerns and Dr. Patrick Flume came in to assess the situation.   “In a collaborative team effort of doctors, nurses, and respiratory therapists lead by Beth’s suggestions, the patient was placed on an ECMO machine. Per hospital policy and staffing shortages, arrangements were made to transfer him to another hospital in another state capable of continuing his sensitive care. Her efforts, with the team’s participation, also included finding possible funding and transportation for the family to travel and see their loved one, all the while running the unit. Her concern for this patient and her leadership abilities truly exemplify what an excellent and compassionate nurse Beth is. This patient was followed and found to have positive outcomes after transport. I truly feel that the patient would not have survived the night without her interventions. Her efforts went beyond an applause award and she is very deserving of the DAISY Award.”   Presented by Nurse Alliance chair Cindy Hough, R.N., Transplant, and chair-elect Pam Smith, R.N., Pediatric Emergency Services, the DAISY Award is given monthly to an MUSC nurse who embodies the efforts and vast knowledge required of a nurse in today’s health care system.   Created by the DAISY Foundation to recognize nurses throughout the country, the award is co-sponsored by Sandpiper Retirement Community, a continuum of care retirement community in Mount Pleasant. All DAISY Award winners receive an African Shona Tribe sculpture entitled, “A Healer’s Touch,” a framed certificate, a daisy bouquet, and a DAISY Award pin.   The DAISY Foundation also provides cinnamon rolls for all the nurses in the winner’s unit. MUSC is among 50 medical facilities honoring nurses with The DAISY Award. This is one initiative of the foundation whose overall goal is to help fight diseases of the immune system.   The not-for-profit DAISY Foundation was established by J. Mark Barnes and his family in memory of his son, J. Patrick, who died at the age of 33 from complications of Idiopathic Thrombo-cytopenic Purpura (ITP), a little known but not uncommon autoimmune disease. The care Patrick and his family received from nurses inspired this unique means of thanking nurses for making a profound difference in the lives of their patients and patient families.   Friday, May 12, 2006 Catalyst Online is published weekly, updated as needed and improved from time to time by the MUSC Office of Public Relations for the faculty, employees and students of the Medical University of South Carolina. Catalyst Online editor, Kim Draughn, can be reached at 792-4107 or by email, catalyst@musc.edu. Editorial copy can be submitted to Catalyst Online and to The Catalyst in print by fax, 792-6723, or by email to catalyst@musc.edu. To place an ad in The Catalyst hardcopy, call Island Pubication at 849-1778, ext. 201.