Memorial Announces Crystal Williams as June Daisy Winner

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​Congratulations to Crystal Williams, PhD, MSN, RN, a team member in 8 Tower at Lake Charles Memorial Hospital! She was nominated by a patient's family for her reassuring demeanor and attention to detail to her patients.

From the Nominator:

Crystal was awesome! Her calm and reassuring demeanor was very comforting. Her attention to detail and compassion, as well as her knowledge made a positive difference in our mother’s care. Crystal was laser focused on our mother’s care and well being. She explained procedures to us, and helped us understand what to expect. Our 90-year-old mother had congestive heart failure with many complications.

Unfortunately, none of the procedures improved her situation, so Crystal helped explain the hospice option to us. She made sure mom was handled gently, and was currently on pain medication for the transition to the hospice facility. Crystal made this very difficult situation more bearable. Crystal is especially talented and completely in the right field of work. She is extremely knowledgeable. I appreciated her calm and compassionate manner. She was always fully present when giving care to our mother. She made my mom feel special with her ability to provide superior care while being friendly and supportive during a very difficult time!

About DAISY:

In late 1999, at the age of 33, Patrick Barnes awoke with some blood blisters in his mouth. Having survived Hodgkins Disease twice, he was admitted to the hospital and diagnosed with the auto-immune disease, ITP (Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura).

Said his father, Mark Barnes, "We are so blessed that we were able to spend the eight weeks of his hospitalization with him and his family. During those weeks, we experienced the best of Nursing. We were there to see the clinical skill that dealt with his very complex medical situation, the fast thinking of nurses who saved his life more than once, and that nursing excellence that took years to hone to the best of the profession. But frankly, as a patient family, we rather expected that Pat would have great clinical care. That was why he was in the hospital. What we did not expect was the way his nurses delivered that care - the kindness and compassion they gave Pat and all of us in his family every day. We were awed by the way the nurses touched him and spoke with him, even when he was on a ventilator and totally sedated. The way they informed and educated us eased our minds. They truly helped us through the darkest hours of our lives, with soft voices of hope and strong loving hugs that to this day, we still feel."

Just days after he died, the family began talking about what they would do to help fill the giant hole in their hearts that Pat’s passing had left. His wife came up with the acronym, DAISY, standing for diseases attacking the immune system. As they discussed what to do in Patrick’s memory, first and foremost, they wanted to say Thank You for the gifts nurses give their patients and families every day. That is when the family created The DAISY Award For Extraordinary Nurses.

For more information regarding Crystal's nomination, click here.