Eight St. Peter’s Health Partners (SPHP) nurses were honored for nursing excellence at the 2016 Times Union “Salute to Nurses” ceremony, held on May 13 at the Albany Marriott.
Presented by SPHP and sponsored by Excelsior College as part of National Nurses Week (May 6-12), “Salute to Nurses” was created to celebrate the profession of nursing and the outstanding men and women who serve as nurses in the Capital Region.
Two SPHP nurses were named a “2016 Nurse of the Year,” an honor reserved for just 10 Capital Region nurses:
- Alyson Johnson, BSN, RN, C-EFM, St. Peter’s Hospital
- Jen Moore, BS, RN, Albany Memorial Hospital
In addition to the 10 “2016 Nurse of the Year” recipients, judges selected 15 finalists who were chosen from the hundreds of submitted nominations. Six SPHP nurses were named “2016 Nurse of the Year Finalists”:
- Janet Bartis-Bayly, BSN, RN, Samaritan Hospital
- Giuseppina Klym, RN, ACLS, Sunnyview Rehabilitation Hospital
- Scott Lang, BSN, RN, St. Peter’s Hospital
- Benton Mahoney, RN, PALS, Sunnyview Rehabilitation Hospital
- Lisa Miller, BSN, RN, St. Peter’s Health Partners Medical Associates
- Michelle Miner, BSN, RN, Eddy Visiting Nurse Association
Nurses were nominated by their peers, colleagues, supervisors, patients, and the families of patients.
At the ceremony, Virginia Golden, chief executive officer of St. Peter’s Hospital and Albany Memorial Hospital, spoke of her own experiences with the many nurses who cared for her and her loved ones over the years. She asked the crowd of 250 people, “how do you ever adequately say thank you?”
“For those in the nursing profession – you give so generously of your skills, competencies, heart, and soul,” Golden said. “I offer my profound thanks, admiration, and my respect for all you give of yourselves to provide hope and healing day in and day out. You are my heroes and I salute and honor you.”
Click here to see a gallery of photos from the event.
The first “Salute to Nurses” was held in 2015, with three SPHP nurses being named a “2015 Nurse of the Year”: Christine Martin, MS, RN, CNS, of Albany Memorial and Samaritan hospitals; Gay-Star McFarland, RN, of Eddy SeniorCare; and Lisa Van Wormer, RN, OCN, CWCN, of St. Peter’s Hospital. Also honored as “2015 Nurse of the Year Finalists” were: George Horn, RN, of St. Peter’s Hospital; and Kayla Bidwell, RN, of Samaritan Hospital.
