WRNMMC, Bethesda, MD  –   Leadership at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center recognized a few of its valued nursing team members, presenting awards to honorees at their worksites May 10 as part of the Nurses Week celebration.

Brig. Gen. Jack Davis, WRNMMC director and an Army nurse, and WRNMMC’s deputy directors for nursing services Navy Cmdr. Teresa Dent and Army Col. Wendy Woodall, joined WRNMMC nurses as they visited locations throughout the hospital to present the awards.

Registered Nurse Pricilla Cullen, of WRNMMC’s GI Clinic, received the Nurse Innovator Award, which she earned for “demonstrating exceptional clinical skills and quality improvement making an impact on patient care.”
Dent said Cullen did “a tremendous job” ensuring beneficiaries received their virtual colonoscopies “during a trying time” in health care because of the pandemic and other challenges. Cullen stated WRNMMC is one of the few sites that offer some type of colonoscopy five days a week.

Army 2nd Lt. Zackary Boadway and Spc. Garrett Hutchinson received the DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses, created in 2001 by the DAISY Foundation to say “thank you” to nurses and for exemplifying “compassion, courage and integrity.”

A patient’s family member nominated Boadway and Hutchinson, both of 3 Center, for the DAISY Award, Woodall said. The nomination stated, “These nursing team members both demonstrated an exceptional level of compassion and patience when caring for my mother during a recent stay at Walter Reed. I was impressed with [their] professionalism. [They] provided remarkable care, making sure all my mom’s needs were attended to in a prompt manner. They went out of the way to communicate to myself and other family members so that we could assist in her recovery. They showed through their actions that they weren’t just doing their jobs, but that they were truly committed and interested in her as a person.”

Army Spc. Joseph Starnes, of 5 West, earned the Nightingale Award, named after Florence Nightingale, “for displaying the attributes of the legendary nurse.”

“I nominated Specialist Starnes [for the award] because of his outstanding achievements,” said Army 1st Lt. Jewel Walker. “He exceeded the standards of a medic. He competed in the Army Best Medic Competition, representing Walter Reed, and he helps the nursing team out a lot,” she added.

The U.S. Army Best Medic Competition physically and intellectually challenges the Army's medics in a multi-day demanding, continuous, and realistic simulated operational environment. The competition includes grueling foot marches, buddy runs, high value target extractions, prolonged field medical care, and weapons qualification.
Davis said Starnes exhibited “the perfect merger of the clinical and readiness aspects [of military medicine] with what he does [at WRNMMC], and going out and doing the best medic [competition]. That is spot on in what we’re trying to get after in military medicine.”

Army Lt. Col. Kristy Gould, also of 5 West, received the Nurse Leadership Award “for displaying the characteristics of an effective leader and enhancing teamwork.”

Walker said Gould “is an outstanding leader who has inspired a lot of us nurses, as well as the enlisted [service members] because she was enlisted as well. She went on to become an ICU nurse and has done awesome things. She’s been on multiple missions. She has rocked this entire 5 deck, and we appreciate her a lot.”

Navy Lt. j.g. Jill Ciritella, of the Mother Infant Care Center, also earned the Nightingale Award. The nomination submitted for her to receive the award explained she assisted a pre-term mother who was unable to see her baby in the NICU by writing notes from the baby to the mom. “You did it because that’s who you are. Nursing is your calling,” Dent said.

Davis added he believes what the entire MICC team does is “sometimes that’s not as appreciated as it should be, that is until [people] get into situations in which [they] need [MICC’s] services. Then it’s really appreciated. The things you did for that mom are incredible, especially for those of us who had to go through those types of situations.”

“I couldn’t do what I do without all of my co-workers,” Ciritella said, while virtually accepting the award. “You guys have been amazing and phenomenal to work with. When I go back to why I received the award, it was something that the nurses who took care of my mom did for me when I was in the NICU, so it’s always something I’d like to give back,” she added.

According to Woodell, for 20th consecutive year, Americans rated nurses the No. 1 professionals for honesty and ethics among a list of professions Gallup pollsters asked U.S. adults to assess. The only time nurses didn’t top the poll within the last 21 years was following the events of 9/11, when firefighters and first responders rated higher.

Nurses Week is celebrated annually from May 6 through May 12, Florence Nightingale’s birthday. Nightingale is considered the founder of modern nursing. She cared for patients during the Crimean War, and became known as “the lady with the lamp” for making rounds while carrying a lantern. She also provided training to other nurses and midwives, emphasizing safety and sanitation while stressing the importance of hand hygiene between the care of patients. She also used statistics and data to track the care of patients, and she also found the first scientifically-based nursing school in London in 1860.