At the NNSDO Convention in Orlando, Florida, July 27-30, 2006, Laura Dornhecker, Chair of the Recognition Committee, presented plaques to the recipients of the 2006 Excellence in Staff Development Awards.
The Belinda E. Puetz Award is the highest award given by NNSDO and is given in recognition of overall excellence in staff development. The 2006 recipient of the Award is Kari Schmidt. Kari has extensive experience in staff development and adult education. She received her Master of Science in Administrative Leadership and Supervision in Adult Education from the University of Wisconsin and is certified in Nursing Professional Development. Kari has published numerous articles on various staff development and adult education topics. Kari is CEO and trainer for her own consulting firm-Training for Impact-and has been named to Who's Who in American Education and American Nursing.
Kari is an accomplished staff development professional who is passionate about education. As a speaker and teacher, she is creative and innovative, engaging and inspiring learners with her excellent communication and facilitation skills. She is a leader and she mentors the leadership skills of others.
The Excellence in Educational Technology Award recognizes innovation in staff development through creative use of technology. The 2006 recipient of the Excellence in Educational Technology Award is Lola Casby. Lieutenant Colonel Lola Casby is the Education and Training Flight Commander at Wright Patterson Hospital where she oversees training for a staff of 1,800 military and civilians. She was nominated for this award in recognition of her innovative use of technology. In particular, she developed a program of Web-based education for 58 staff deployed to Kuwait. Lt. Col. Casby was nominated by her colleague Lt. Col. Kathleen Conrad.
The Excellence in the Role of the Professional Development Leader Award recognizes a professional development educator who serves in key leadership roles in the work setting. The 2006 recipient of the Excellence in the Role of the Professional Development Leader is Joan S. Braun. Joan has been the Director of the Staff Development Department at Raritan Bay Medical Center for the past 20 years. Joan consistently empowers the nursing staff to achieve their optimal potential through professional, leadership, and clinical development. She leads and teaches by example and provides strong, compassionate, and knowledgeable leadership. Joan was nominated by her colleague Paula O'Neill.
The Excellence in the Role of the Professional Development Researcher Award recognizes excellence in professional development research as indicated by the candidate's support and integration of research into practice and fostering of staff members' knowledge and skills in the research process. The 2006 recipient is Paula Thrasher. Paula is an instructor in staff development and nursing research at Akron General Medical Center in Akron, Ohio. Paula was recognized for the development and implementation of an evidence-based practice process at the Akron General Medical Center. In addition to this task, Paula works with the Quality Improvement/Performance Improvement department and advanced practice nurses group to develop plans for using research data for staff education.
The Excellence in Preceptorship Award recognizes excellence in a preceptor program that enhances the learners' competence in providing quality healthcare. The 2006 recipient is Carol Kridler. Carol is a staff development educator at Summa Health System in Akron, Ohio. As part of her role, Carol coordinates the process of orienting newly hired critical care nurses to ensure that they meet their clinical objectives and critical care pathway requirements. She ensures that both preceptors and orientees are using the latest evidence-based research and findings through her work coordinating revisions for the critical care policy/procedure manual. She works closely with the preceptors to ensure that they are effectively training new staff. Carol was nominated by her affiliate-the Pentagon Council of Healthcare Staff Development Educators.
The Excellence in the Roles of the Professional Development Facilitator, Change Agent, and Consultant Award recognizes excellence of a professional development educator in a variety of roles as facilitator, change agent, and consultant. The 2006 recipient is Brian French. Brian is a Professional Development Coordinator at Massachusetts General Hospital in the Knight Nursing Center for Clinical and Professional Development. Brian manages a staff of clinical educators, training specialists, and clinical nurse specialists in the development, planning, implementation, and evaluation of educational programming for an academic medical center with over 3,000 staff nurses and unlicensed personnel. Brian and his staff have gone from being trained after a planning process to sitting at the table from project inception in partnerships with groups to manage departmental or hospital-wide educational efforts. Brian was nominated by his colleagues Trish Gibbons and Taryn Pittman.
The Excellence in the Role of the Professional Development Educator Award recognizes excellence in professional development education. The 2006 recipient is Major Joe Desjardins. Major Desjardins, or Major D, is Chief of Education and Training at Dover Hospital in Dover, Delaware. He was nominated for his efforts to upgrade the Air Force's Health Professions Education and Training Course. He developed 15 scenarios used to evaluate the achievement of learner objectives and he incorporated the use of a Web site to enhance students' readiness for learning. In addition to his technology expertise, Major D recognized a need for a tool to evaluate inspection readiness for both JCAHO and the Air Force Inspection Agency inspection, and he developed and implemented this tool. Major D was also recognized for his willingness to guide and mentor learners.
Excellence in Humor Award The 2006 recipient is Linda Misko. Linda is a medical-surgical educator at Florida Hospital Memorial System in Ormond Beach, Florida. Linda was recognized for generating fun and joy in her daily work environment, helping others to use humor in their work, and promoting a healthy work environment through the use of humor. Linda was nominated by her colleague Mary Harper.
The Affiliate Excellence Award is intended to recognize the NNSDO affiliate group that has demonstrated excellence in program quality. The 2006 recipient of the Affiliate Excellence Award is the Pentagon Council of Healthcare Staff Development Educators. The Pentagon Council of Healthcare Staff Development Educators, based in the Akron, Ohio area, was recognized for its long history of high quality and consistent programs. The affiliate began meeting in the 1970s and became an NNSDO affiliate in 1993. There are currently over 60 members of the affiliate.
RESEARCH GRANT RECIPIENTS
NNSDO awarded two $1,000 research grants in 2006.
The first was awarded to Charlene Smith.
Charlene Smith is Director of Education at Highland Hospital in Rochester, New York. Her research is titled Comparison of Web-Based Instructional Design Strategies in a Pain Management Program for Nursing Professional Development.
The second grant was awarded to Catherine M. Witsberger. Catherine is a Nurse Educator at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center-Presbyterian, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Her research project is titled Effective Communication Strategies: Helping to Improve Co-Worker Relationships.