UCI Health emergency department receives DAISY Team Award
Individual nurses recognized for compassionate, reassuring care
Orange, Calif. — The emergency department team at UCI Health — Orange, formerly known as UCI Medical Center, has won the prestigious DAISY Team Award, an annual recognition that honors nursing excellence.
The team was nominated by a patient who broke their hip in a fall while walking their new puppy. Feeling fearful, facing disability and a long recovery, the patient recalled the calming attention the ED nursing team gave.
“The ED was busy, but I felt like I was the only one in there.”
From nurses who brought the patient warm blankets to a nurse who helped the patient sort out care for their pets, the patient expressed gratitude for the personalized, compassionate care they received.
“These small gestures are a testament to the dedication and compassion of what nursing is all about,” they wrote. “The entire ED team was phenomenal, and I greatly appreciate all their care and support through this event.”
OC’s only level 1 trauma center
UCI Health — Orange is home to Orange County’s only level I adult and level II pediatric trauma center and gold level 1 geriatric emergency department. It is also the busiest trauma center in the county.
The emergency department is also a designated receiving center for stroke and cardiac patients. It is also home to the region's only burn center. Because of our expertise, other emergency departments in the region refer their complex cases to us.
Individual DAISY honors
UCI Health — Los Alamitos telemetry nurse Nick Tumarao received the DAISY Award for comforting and reassuring a frightened patient.
“In a high-pressure healthcare environment, where time and resources are often stretched, Tumarao’s empathy and patient-centered approach stood out in the most meaningful way,” wrote the patient’s daughter.
“His ability to deliver both exceptional clinical care and heartfelt emotional support exemplifies the highest ideals of the nursing profession.”
Henry Ursua.UCI Health — Los Alamitos wound care nurse Henry Ursua was nominated by a patient and his spouse for his support after a life-changing procedure.
“Henry exemplifies the best of what it means to be a nurse. His skill, compassion and dedication made a lasting impact on our experience,” writes the spouse.
UCI Health — Fountain Valley pulmonary nurse Wendy Mai was recognized with the DAISY Leadership Award for supporting and guiding her team.
Wendy Mai.“Wendy has done much work assisting staff through the daily challenges on her unit,” her nominator writes. “From finding solutions to complex patient care to supporting charge nurses when the unit census suddenly increases, Wendy has been there.”
UCI Health — Placentia Linda acute care nurse Emily Mock received a DAISY Award after being nominated by a colleague who noticed her dedication to patients in her care.
“As a bedside nurse, Emily consistently goes above and beyond, taking the time to teach her patients and their families about their medical conditions and treatments in a compassionate understandable manner,” writes her nominator.
Emily Mock.Leading nurses
UCI Health has a long-standing tradition of nursing excellence. In 2003, UCI Health — Orange became the first academic medical center in Southern California to achieve Magnet® designation and the first hospital in Orange County. It has since been redesignated five times, a feat achieved by just 10% of hospitals in the world.
In recent years, nursing units at UCI Health — Orange have earned multiple Beacon Awards for Excellence from the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses, including:
- Neuroscience intensive care unit: gold
- Burn intensive care unit: gold
- Medical intensive care unit: gold
- Cardiovascular intensive care unit: silver
- Cardiovascular surgery: silver
Nearly 52% of nurses at UCI Health are nationally certified in at least one specialty and 83% are prepared at the BSN level or higher.
How to nominate a team member
Anyone can nominate an exceptional nurse or patient care team member for a DAISY or Sunflower Award, including faculty, staff and patients. Simply fill out the appropriate nomination form below:
- DAISY Nurse Leader Award nomination form ›
- DAISY Team Award nomination form ›
- DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses nomination form ›
- Sunflower Ancillary Staff Award nomination form ›
About the DAISY Award
The individual DAISY Award recognizes a nurse for being an outstanding role model. To be nominated for this award, they must consistently demonstrate a caring attitude focusing on meeting the needs of patients and families, listen with their heart, significantly makes a difference in the life of a patient, shows good assessment and critical thinking skills and brings enthusiasm and energy to their daily work. The DAISY Award committee selects one nominated nurse each month who exemplifies what it means to truly be an outstanding caregiver.
About UCI Health
UCI Health, one of California’s largest academic health systems, is the clinical enterprise of the University of California, Irvine. The 1,317-bed system comprises its main campus UCI Medical Center, its flagship hospital in Orange, Calif., the UCI Health — Irvine medical campus, four hospitals and affiliated physicians of the UCI Health Community Network in Orange and Los Angeles counties and a network of ambulatory care centers across the region. UCI Medical Center provides tertiary and quaternary care and is home to the only Orange County-based National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer center, high-risk perinatal/neonatal program and American College of Surgeons-verified Level I adult and Level II pediatric trauma center, gold level 1 geriatric emergency department and regional burn center. Powered by UC Irvine, UCI Health serves nearly 5.7 million people in Orange County, western Riverside County and southeast Los Angeles County. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and X (formerly Twitter).