Leah Blackwell, RN – H4 – SICU/CVICU
Please join the Center for Nursing Excellence in congratulating Leah Blackwell, RN for being selected as the DAISY Award recipient for the month of February!
Leah works on H4 – SICU/CVICU and was nominated by a co-worker. The nomination below reflects how Leah impacted their life in a very special way.
“I can’t imagine a more deserving person for the Daisy Award other than Leah Blackwell. However, it’s difficult to name one specific situation in which this nurse impacted my life and the lives other others. What makes a great nurse isn’t one act in particular. It’s the acts of intelligence and diligence, empathy and understanding, and compassion and humanity. It’s these actions that are used for each and every patient, each and every day.
During my time working with Leah Blackwell on F4, she never stopped caring about what she does. Even during the times that brought tears to her eyes, she would tell me how important being a nurse is to her. She proved that to me every time I worked beside her. She would listen to her patient’s concerns, actually listen to them. She would do the little things to brighten up one’s day. I would see her spending over an hour braiding a patient’s hair because she knew how important that was to her patient. Leah wasn’t just meeting the physical needs of her patients, she was helping them emotionally. She would constantly go out of her way to ensure her patient’s satisfaction. There would be times where I didn’t see her for hours at a time because of the amount of time and care she gave to each of her patients. There were days were she wouldn’t eat lunch because she puts her needs second to others. And she never sought out recognition for her deeds. Whenever I spoke to one of her patients, I would hear them rave about how wonderful she treated them and how knowledgeable she was, and how she made them feel safe when she was their nurse. It’s incredibly difficult for me to name one specific moment in which Leah went above-and-beyond for a patient because it was every time. Every day she goes above what is expected of her. Every single day. I’m not speaking hyperbolic either. Every single day, she has a smile and warms up the patient’s rooms she walks into, to use her incredible medical knowledge and compassion to ease a patient’s stay in the hospital.
Objectively speaking, Leah Blackwell is an outstanding UAMS employee who is actively seeking better ways to improve patient care. She recently transferred to the H4 ICU to continue her pursuit of critical care knowledge to help the patients and families in their most needed times of help.
She has a beautiful heart and beautiful soul. She has impacted my life more than she will ever realize; I will strive to be as good of a nurse as her. Leah Blackwell will forever be my role model, and I thank her for everything she does for UAMS, the employees, and most importantly, the patients.”
Great job, Leah Blackwell!
To learn more about The DAISY Award or to nominate a deserving licensed nurse, please visit: http//nurses.uams.edu.