On February 13, Sarah Morrissette, RN, was recognized with a DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses. As part of the DAISY tradition, Sarah received a bouquet of daisies, A Healer’s Touch statuette, and a platter of cinnamon buns to share with her unit.

Anitra Galmore, Vice President, Chief Operations Officer/Chief Nursing Officer, presented the award.

Sarah has been a nurse at South County Health since 2021. Sarah’s two DAISY nominations during this recognition period came from family members of patients who witnessed her compassionate care.

The daughter of one patient writes:

"We have had the great fortune to have Sarah as our RN on multiple visits. In addition to providing extraordinary care to both of my parents, Sarah’s bright attitude and compassion has always made a difficult situation so much better. She does this not just for my parents but also for us, as caregivers.

Sarah is able to connect to each of my parents and talk to them in such a way to make the experience so much less scary and intimidating. Her memory and knowledge of each of them across their multiple visits is extraordinary. Sarah always goes the extra mile for them whether it is an extra pillow, answering questions, or just being there to listen. She also brings comfort by remembering them each as individuals and as a married couple for over 60 years.

Thank you so much, Sarah, for ALL that you do, not only for my parents, but for all of the patients who are lucky to have you as their nurse."

The son of another patient of Sarah’s shared the following in his nomination letter:

From the first time Sarah stepped into his room, she was cheerful, attentive and put my dad at ease. Sarah did a great job explaining the process, what meds they were giving him and why, and providing as much information as possible. My dad is very analytical so having the information put him at ease.

I’m sure Sarah and all the nurses are under stress managing difficult situations. However, without exception, Sarah walked into the room with a smile and positive disposition. Given that my dad saw Sarah more often than the doctors, she became his anchor during his stay. Thank you so, so much for Sarah and the entire staff. You’re all guardian angels.

South County Health is delighted to honor Sarah with a DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses and would also like to acknowledge the rest of the nominees for this recognition period:

Louis Cota Cisneros, RN, Intensive Care Unit
Elena Cronin, RN, Emergency Department
Nicole Ethier, RN, Emergency Department
Sue Habarle, RN, Cancer Center
Sarah Kettle, RN, Orthopedics (Recognized with a DAISY Award in October)
Ashlin Peters, RN, Women and Newborn Care Unit
Alexis Plumley, RN, Intensive Care Unit
Denise Sheppard, RN, Intensive Care Unit
Kaylen Valliere, RN, Medical Surgical Unit

About the DAISY Foundation

The DAISY Foundation was established in 1999 by the family of J. Patrick Barnes. His family was awestruck by the care and compassion his nurses provided and one of the goals they set in creating a Foundation was to recognize extraordinary nurses everywhere who make an enormous difference in the lives of so many people by the super-human work they do every day.

Cinnamon rolls were a favorite of Patrick’s during his illness. The Barnes Family asks that whenever and wherever nurses smell that wonderful cinnamon aroma, they stop for a moment and think about how special they are.