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NYC Health + Hospitals Celebrates 31 Nurse Professionals and Kings County Nursing Staff as Part of Its Annual Nursing Excellence Awards

Nurse professionals were nominated by their colleagues in honor of their achievements and commitment to patients

NYC Health + Hospitals/Kings County nursing staff presented with Structural Empowerment Award

Dec 03, 2021

New York, NY

NYC Health + Hospitals today honored 31 nurse professionals from across the public health care system as part of its annual Nursing Excellence Awards. A total of 465 nominations were submitted from across the system and the 31 honorees were selected from this pool by a panel of nurse leaders. Those selected for the recognition are nurse trailblazers who demonstrate leadership in various capacities. The 2021 Nursing Excellence Awards honor 23 nurses with “Excellence in Clinical Nursing” awards, representing each of NYC Health + Hospitals’ facilities and clinical service lines, including acute care, post-acute, correctional health services and Gotham Health. This year’s awards also include four system-level awards, recognizing one nurse chosen from the entire system who has demonstrated excellence in a specific area: “Excellence in Home, Community, or Ambulatory Care;” “Excellence in Education & Mentorship;” “Excellence in Nursing Leadership;” and “Excellence in Volunteerism and Service.”

“I truly believe that our nurses are at the heart of our mission to care for every New Yorker without exception,” said NYC Health + Hospitals President and CEO Mitchell Katz, MD. “Every day, our nurses reach beyond their routine duties to ensure patients are tested, vaccinated and taking better charge of their own health and the health of their families.”

“Our Nursing Excellence honorees exemplify what it means to be a healthcare hero and this is a great opportunity for us to shine a light on their extraordinary work,” said Chief Nursing Executive for NYC Health + Hospitals Natalia Cineas, DNP, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN. “We express our gratitude to them, and all of our nurses, for the skill, professionalism, and compassion they provide for our patients every day.”

NYC Health + Hospitals is the first health system to present the DAISY Award for Nurses Advancing Health Equity, created by the DAISY Foundation to honor nurses whose work advances health equity, mitigating health disparities that are caused by social determinants of health. This award recognizes individual nurses or nurse-led teams, who go above and beyond in caring for patients and families who are disadvantaged demographically, psycho-socially, or economically. Four nurses – one each from our acute care, post-acute, correctional health and Gotham Health facilities – are receiving the inaugural DAISY Award for Nurses Advancing Health Equity.

The second annual Structural Empowerment Award was presented to the nursing leadership and staff at NYC Health + Hospitals/Kings County. This award recognizes a single facility within the greater public health care system that has demonstrated a commitment to achieving higher performance levels, including promoting, encouraging and supporting infrastructure creation leading to sustained and substantiated increases in certification rates and other notable metrics.

A highlight of the Nursing Excellence Awards is the presentation of the second annual Josephine Bolus Nursing Champion Award, renamed in 2020 in honor of the very first recipient of the Nursing Champion Award in 2013, former NYC Health + Hospitals Board Member Josephine Bolus. The 2021 Josephine Bolus Nursing Champion Award is being presented to DAISY Foundation co-founders Bonnie and Mark Barnes, who are delivering this year’s keynote address during the Nursing Excellence Awards. The Josephine Bolus Nursing Champion Award is NYC Health + Hospitals’ highest honor bestowed upon supporters of nurses and the nursing profession, and recognizes Drs. Bonnie and Mark Barnes for their deep and unwavering commitment to recognize and support nurses all over the world.

The 2021 Nursing Excellence Award honorees included:

BRONX

  • Karen Garcia, MSN-Ed, RN, CEN, TCRN
    Staff Nurse
    NYC Health + Hospitals/Lincoln
    Excellence in Clinical Nursing Award
  • Silvia Romero, RN
    Staff Nurse
    Health + Hospitals/Gotham Health, Belvis
    Excellence in Clinical Nursing Award
  • Sharon Simmonds, RN
    Staff Nurse
    NYC Health + Hospitals/North Central Bronx
    Excellence in Clinical Nursing Award
  • Hyacinth Simpson, RN
    Staff Nurse
    NYC Health + Hospitals/Jacobi
    Excellence in Clinical Nursing Award
  • Rosa Vargas, BSN, RN
    Accountable Care Manager
    NYC Health + Hospitals/Gotham Health, Morrisania
    Excellence in Clinical Nursing Award

BROOKLYN

  • Fredrick Adeyemi, RN
    Staff Nurse
    NYC Health + Hospitals/McKinney
    Excellence in Clinical Nursing Award
  • Corine Armand, MS, RN, FNP
    Family Nurse Practitioner
    NYC Health + Hospitals/Gotham Health, East New York
    Excellence in Clinical Nursing Award
  • Jawwad Butt, RN
    Staff Nurse
    NYC Health + Hospitals/Coney Island
    Excellence in Clinical Nursing Award
  • Vernita Ellison Brown, MSN, BSN, RN
    Head Nurse
    NYC Health + Hospitals/Gotham Health, Cumberland
    Excellence in Clinical Nursing Award
  • Kendra Kartheiser, BSN, RN
    Staff Nurse
    NYC Health + Hospitals/Kings County
    The DAISY Foundation’s Health Equity Award
  • Nicola Madou, MSN, MPH, RN
    Head Nurse
    NYC Health + Hospitals/Woodhull
    Excellence in Clinical Nursing Award
  • Chandrapatti Singh Reddy, RN
    Staff Nurse
    NYC Health + Hospitals/Kings
    Excellence in Clinical Nursing Award

MANHATTAN

  • Barbara Browne, BSN, RN
    Staff Nurse, Pediatric Emergency Department
    NYC Health + Hospitals/Harlem
    Excellence in Clinical Nursing Award
  • Tina Hackman, BSN, RN
    Staff Nurse
    NYC Health + Hospitals/Carter
    Excellence in Clinical Nursing Award
  • Yi-Hsiang Hsiao, RN
    Staff Nurse
    NYC Health + Hospitals/Gotham Health, Gouverneur
    Excellence in Clinical Nursing Award
  • Patra Lee, BSN, RN
    Staff Nurse
    NYC Health + Hospitals/Coler
    Excellence in Clinical Nursing Award
  • Milana Leviyev, BSN, RN
    Head Nurse
    NYC Health + Hospitals/Coler
    The DAISY Foundation Award for Nurses Advancing Health Equity
  • Maria Luisa Patria, BSN, RN
    Head Nurse, Oral Surgery
    NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue
    Excellence in Clinical Nursing Award
  • Sonia Reyes Mendoza, BSN, RN
    Staff Nurse
    NYC Health + Hospitals/Metropolitan
    Excellence in Clinical Nursing Award
  • Jasmine Slater-Small, BSN, RN
    Staff Nurse
    NYC Health + Hospitals/Gouverneur
    Excellence in Clinical Nursing Award
  • Blesilda Zapanta, MSHS, BSN, RN, CNOR
    Assistant Director of Nursing Peri Operative Services/Chief Nurse Operating Room
    NYC Health + Hospitals/Metropolitan
    Excellence in Nursing Leadership Award

QUEENS

  • Linda Bulone, RN, OCN, CCRC
    Research Nurse Manager, Cancer Center
    NYC Health + Hospitals/Queens
    Excellence in Volunteerism and Service Award
  • Jasmine Samuel, MSN, RN
    Staff Nurse
    NYC Health + Hospitals/Queens
    Excellence in Clinical Nursing Award
  • Justin Yi, BSN, RN
    Staff Nurse
    NYC Health + Hospitals/Elmhurst
    Excellence in Clinical Nursing Award

STATEN ISLAND

  • Alex Apostol, BSN, RN
    Head Nurse
    NYC Health + Hospitals/Sea View
    Excellence in Clinical Nursing Award
  • Xiaowei Ling, BSN, RN
    Staff Nurse
    NYC Health + Hospitals/Gotham Health, Vanderbilt
    Excellence in Clinical Nursing Award
  • Tayyaba Mughal, BSN, RN, CCRN
    Staff Nurse
    NYC Health + Hospitals/Gotham Health, Vanderbilt
    The DAISY Foundation Award for Nurses Advancing Health Equity

COMMUNITY CARE

  • Keenfan Rebecca Sze, MSN, MPA, RN, FNP
    Associate Executive Director, Community Care
    NYC Health + Hospitals/Community Care
    Excellence in Home, Community, or Ambulatory Care Award

CORRECTIONAL HEALTH SERVICES

  • Verne Corey Baptiste, LPN
    Licensed Practical Nurse
    NYC Health + Hospitals/Correctional Health
    The DAISY Foundation Award for Nurses Advancing Health Equity
  • Joseph Oyibotsa, MSN, RN
    Staff Nurse
    NYC Health + Hospitals/Correctional Health
    Excellence in Education & Mentorship Award
  • Julissa Ramos, MSN, BSN, RN
    Staff Nurse
    NYC Health + Hospitals/Correctional Health
    Excellence in Clinical Nursing Award

KINGS COUNTY NURSING LEADERSHIP

Opal Sinclair-Chung, MSNE, MSA, RN, Chief Nursing Officer
Marife Patagan, EdD, MAN, RN, Deputy Director, Director Med/Surg
Jennifer Trotman, MS, RN, Certification in Bioethics and Medical Humanity, Associate Executive Director, Behavioral Health
Shyla Roshin, DNP, RN, Director of Nursing, Behavioral Health
Hyacinth Charles, MSA, RN, Director, Ambulatory Care
Silvanus Michel, MS, RN, CCRN, Director, Critical Care
Susana Consolacion, MAE, RN, CNOR, Director, Peri-Operative Services
Vera Appiah Agyemang, MSN, RN, CNM, Director Maternal Child Health
Diahann Singh, MSN-E, RN, Director, Emergency Department
Julianne Gentile, MS, RN, ANP-BC, Director, Education and Research
Fe Villar Jacolbe, MA, RN, RN-BC, PMP, Director Quality Improvement and Pathway to Excellence
Cee-Ann Boatswain, MSN, RN, Director, Informatics
Eugene Vaknansky, MSN, RN, FNP, Director, Staffing and Finance
Ann Marie Williams, MSA, RN, CNOR, Associate Director, Peri-op Services
Myrna Foster, DNP-C, MA, RN, Associate Director, Nursing Administration
Laura Shamailov, MSN, MPH, RN, Associate Director, Behavioral Health

The nurses honored are among the more than 9,000 nurses at NYC Health + Hospitals who provide care throughout the system’s hospitals, post-acute care centers, community health centers and neighborhood clinics, home care, and the correctional health system, throughout the five boroughs.

To learn more about the Nursing Excellence Awards or any of this year’s recipients, visit https://www.nychealthandhospitals.org/nursing-excellence-awards-2021/.


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