Franciscan Health honors two exceptional nurses

Franciscan Health Olympia Fields recognized registered nurses Maria Theresa Arban, RN, and Marinette De Jesus, RN, as its latest DAISY Award recipients.

Both nurses are the first honorees to be presented with a DAISY Award during Franciscan Health Olympia Fields public ceremony relaunch. This national recognition is presented to registered nurses who make exceptional contributions to their hospital’s patients and team members.

Arban, a Chicago Heights resident, has been in nursing for 22 years and currently practices in the hospital’s 2300 Orthopedic Unit. De Jesus, who has been in nursing for 23 years and practices in the hospital’s 2900 Observation Unit, resides in Oak Forest.

Both nurses were nominated by a woman whose mother and father who were both admitted to the hospital within days of each other. The former patients’ daughter, who attended the DAISY award ceremony to personally read her submitted nomination, said her experience with these two special nurses changed her perspective on what nursing excellence really means.

“Marinette is the perfect example of an RN.,” she said. “She was at providing nursing care. She kept me abreast of all aspects of care and changes. She would assist the PCT’s with my mom’s morning care when we needed help, and she would literally and figuratively roll up her sleeves to assist with any tasks that were needed. No questions asked. I am honored that my mom had the opportunity to be cared for by Marinette.”

“When my mother was transferred to the observation unit, Maria Theresa was the epitome of a caring, compassionate, and professional nurse,” she added. She kept me and others informed on all aspects of her care. It was the way that Maria Theresa provided nursing care to my mom that took away my feelings of worry and stress.”

“Both nurses worked as a team to provide a seamless experience of comfort, compassion, nursing expertise and dedication to helping those in need,” she added. “They both share the skilled art of communication and genuine concern for others. They are both examples of what a nurse should be.”

Franciscan Health salutes nurses like Arban and De Jesus who deliver extraordinary, compassionate, and skillful care. As part of this recognition, both nurses received a DAISY award pin, the Healer's Touch sculpture, a DAISY Award certificate, and a box of Cinnabon cinnamon rolls to share with coworkers. Funding for the DAISY Award is provided by the Franciscan Health Foundation.

About the DAISY Award

The DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses is an internationally recognized honor that was established in 1999 via the DAISY Foundation members of the family of Patrick Barnes. DAISY is an acronym for Diseases Attacking the Immune System. Patrick Barnes was a 33-year-old husband and father of an infant daughter who died eight weeks after being diagnosed with the autoimmune disease idiopathic thrombocytopenia. The award was established to honor what his family perceived to be extraordinary kindness and compassion by the nurses caring for him during his illness. Cinnabon’s are given to the winners because when Patrick was too ill to have an appetite, at one point he was able to eat a Cinnabon his father had brought, and Patrick requested that Cinnabon’s be brought in the next day for not just him, but for the nurses as a thank you for their care. More information about the DAISY award can be found at https://www.daisyfoundation.org.

Submitted by Robyn Ali, Marketing Specialist, Franciscan Health Olympia Fields, Marketing and Public Relations Department robyn.ali@franciscanalliance.org