Greenwich Hospital Names 'Nurse Of The Year,' Other Honorees

Information via Greenwich Hospital

GREENWICH, CT — Greenwich Hospital recently hosted its annual Nurse’s Day celebration, recognizing the achievements of the hospital’s staff members who exemplify what it means to go above and beyond to serve their patients, help their coworkers and better the community.

There were four awards presented at the ceremony: Helen Meehan Award, Physician Partner-in-Care Award, Partner-in-Care Award, and the inaugural COLLABORATIVE Award. All awards are nominated by and voted on by staff.

The Helen Meehan Award, or the Nurse of the Year Award, is given to a registered nurse for excellence in nursing practice, teaching or leadership. This year's recipient was Caitriona Perna.

This is not the first time Perna was honored by Greenwich Hospital.

In 2014, she received the Quality Award for jumping into action and saving a woman’s life while she was at a school event for her daughter. Her colleagues describe her as a selfless, fearless superhero who lifts everyone around her, Greenwich Hospital said.

At Greenwich Hospital, she sits on the Practice Council, Staffing Committee, Quality & Safety Committee and the GI Section Committee.

The Physician Partner-in-Care Award, recognizing a Greenwich Hospital physician who promotes excellence in hospital practice, staff and patient interaction, teaching and leadership, went to Dr. Nidhi Y. Shah.

She was chosen to be Greenwich Hospital’s lead hospitalist for Quality shortly after arriving in 2021, and in August of 2022, Shah became the chair of the multidisciplinary Professional Practice Evaluation Committee (PPEC). She is credited with transforming this committee’s scope and impact, as well as the agent committees that report to PPEC throughout the year.

The Partner-in-Care Award for excellence evidenced by support staff who go above and beyond their job description for the benefit of the patient was presented to Calvin Loving of the Greenwich Hospital Food and Nutrition team.

Loving has been at the hospital for 22 years, working on all units, and now he is predominantly stationed on the Maternity unit. Loving has received positive feedback from numerous patients and coworkers over the years for his dedication to quality service, according to Greenwich Hospital.

The final award presented was the new COLLABORATIVE Award. It stands for Colleague within our Organization Leading and Living Altruistically for the Betterment of our community recognizing Opportunities Resources and Action plans to support our Teams Intuitively while Vitalizing and promoting Excellence.

The inaugural honoree was Renee Rafferty of the Greenwich Hospital Safety and Quality team.

Rafferty’s pursuit of higher education amidst her demanding role as a quality and safety specialist is a testament to her unwavering determination, Greenwich Hospital said. She not only obtained a Master of Applied Science degree (MAS), specializing in patient safety and health care quality, but also earned certifications as a Certified Professional in Healthcare Quality (CPHQ) and a Certified Professional in Patient Safety (CPPS).

“Each interaction, no matter how small, has the power to make a difference,” said Anna Cerra, chief nursing officer and senior vice president, in a news release. “It's important to not only recognize the outstanding contributions of our nurses, but to also take the time to acknowledge the hard work and dedication of all those who contribute to the delivery of the quality care.”