Ozarks Healthcare OB Nurse Heather West receives DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nursing Care
Ozarks Healthcare is proud to announce that Heather West, registered nurse (RN), from Ozarks Healthcare’s Obstetrics (OB) Department, has been honored with the prestigious DAISY (Diseases Attacking the Immune System) Award. This award, presented by the not-for-profit DAISY Foundation, recognizes nurses for their exceptional care, compassion, and clinical excellence.
The DAISY Foundation, based in Glen Ellen, California, was established in memory of J. Patrick Barnes, who passed away at the age of 33 from complications of Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura (ITP). Inspired by the extraordinary care Patrick received from nurses during his illness, the foundation seeks to honor nurses who make a profound difference in the lives of their patients and their families.
West was nominated by a patient who shared a heartfelt story of the incredible support and care she received during a particularly challenging time. West’s dedication and kindness went beyond her professional duties, providing emotional and practical support that helped the patient through the difficulties of postpartum recovery and the early stages of motherhood.
“I felt that I would be prepared for this, but nothing could’ve prepared me for motherhood,” Amber Tooley, who nominated West, said. “This is hard. Postpartum is hard … but Heather made this transition less hard. She saw me as a person, not just a patient.”
Members of the public, including patients, visitors, nurses, physicians, and Ozarks Healthcare staff may nominate a deserving nurse for his or her compassionate care and clinical excellence by filling out an a nomination form located online at https://www.ozarkshealthcare.com/your-visit/ or picking one up at several locations throughout Ozarks Healthcare’s hospital.
Ozarks Healthcare is a not-for-profit health system that serves more than 160,000 residents across south-central Missouri and northern Arkansas. With its main campus residing in West Plains, Missouri, the health system offers a full spectrum of healthcare for all ages through its 114-bed hospital, behavioral health, therapies, pharmacies, rehabilitation, and home care services, along with specialty and family medicine clinics. Ozarks Healthcare has rural locations across an eight-county service area and is accredited by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Health Care Organizations.
Pictured from left to right: Tom Keller, Ozarks Healthcare President and CEO, Tonya Aaron, Assistant Chief Nursing Officer (CNO), Lacey Carter, Chief Operations Officer (COO) and Chief Nursing Officer (CNO), Kate Renfrow, Women’s Center Manager, Heather West, RN, with Amber Tooley and family, who nominated West to receive the DAISY Award.
