Two Samaritan Nurses Honored for Nursing Excellence

Melissa Belanger, RN

Samaritan Hospital held a ceremony on June 25 to honor two nurses for their exceptional patient care. Melissa Belanger, RN, and JoAnne Maher, RN, nurses on the hospital’s medical/surgical unit were presented with the prestigious DAISY Award.

A patient of Belanger’s nominated her for going above and beyond to help her during her recent hospital stay. Deeply touched by what she described as Belanger’s compassion, the patient wrote, “Melissa gave me hope and blessed me in so many ways. She was so kind to me, like I was her only patient. While there was no sunshine, she gave me some.”

JoAnne Maher, RN

Of Maher’s outstanding care, a surgery patient wrote, “She always made sure that I was comfortable, and would always ask about my family to help maintain what’s important and keep a positive attitude.”

DAISY is an acronym for Diseases Attacking the Immune System. The family of Patrick Barnes, who died at age 33 of complications of Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura (ITP), created the DAISY Award to honor his memory and recognize the healing work of the nurses who had cared for him and continue to care for patients everywhere.

There are more than 2,000 health care facilities in all 50 states and 14 other countries, committed to honoring nurses with The DAISY Award.