Nurses receive statewide awards
- Category: Awards & Recognitions, Community
- Posted On:
- Written By: Deb Sutton, Sweetwater Memorial Marketing Director
Two of the WNA’s six awards went to MHSC employees
Two of Memorial Hospital of Sweetwater County’s nurses recently were recognized by the Wyoming Nurses Association in its annual statewide awards for excellence.
Ashley Jenkins, a registered nurse on the Medical/Surgical floor, and Rachelle Harris, a registered nurse in the Post-Anesthesia Care Unit, received two of WNA’s six awards.
Jenkins received WNA’s 2020 Nursing Excellence in the Workplace Award, given to a registered nurse who exemplifies consistent high-quality nursing practices and displays professionalism, according to the WNA.
“I am both honored and humbled to have been selected,” Jenkins said. “To be chosen for such a distinguished award so early in my career means a great deal, especially in a year that has been so difficult for everyone in our field. It reinforces my career choice to become a nurse and motivates me to work even harder. Despite the daily challenges nursing presents, I cannot imagine myself doing anything else.”
Harris received the WNA’s 2020 Faces of Our Future Nurses Award, given to a registered nurse who has been licensed for five years or less who is known for innovative practice, service in the community, or specific program that will serve the public in the area they practice.
“Being awarded on the state level is certainly an honor,” Harris said. “I am humbled by this experience. It has been amazing to feel the support of the statewide community for the efforts I previously considered to be private and personal. This award has been a great reminder that ‘no good deed goes unnoticed.’ This recognition has encouraged me to pursue my nursing goals with greater passion and dedication.”
Sweetwater Memorial also had several other nominations considered for awards.
Registered Nurses Nicole Mandros and Nicole Halstead were nominated for the Nursing Excellence in the Workplace Award. Julie Leavitt, an MHSC case manager and instructor at Western Wyoming Community College, was nominated for the Excellence in Leadership Award.
The hospital’s COVID-19 Preparedness Incident Command Team and the Sweetwater Memorial Surgical Services Team each were nominated for the Collaborative Practice Award. It is given to a health system or individual hospital for a collaborative project which shows an interdisciplinary approach to best practices that resulted in improved patient outcomes or cost savings.