Winners of the 2015 LPN Awards of Excellence: John McCullough, LPN; Shelley Scorgie, RN; Stacey Hall, LPN; and Darcy Shenfield, LPN.
A tremendous group of nurses were showered with applause by their peers at the annual College of Licensed Practical Nurses of Alberta (CLPNA) Awards Dinner on April 30.
All of the nominees and the winners of this year’s LPN Awards of Excellence are truly something special, and represent all the diversity and dedication of their professions.
LPN winners received a commemorative crystal award and $1000. Award recipients are selected by a committee of the Fredrickson-McGregor Education Foundation for LPNs on behalf of CLPNA.
RELATED – About the LPN Awards of Excellence
Pat Fredrickson Excellence in Leadership Award
Honouring LPNs who consistently demonstrates excellence in leadership, advocacy, communication and a passion for the profession.
Winner: John McCullough, LPN
John McCullough is a leader as an Licensed Practical Nurse and as a Care Manager at Devonshire Care Centre. He represents his profession with integrity and a passion for caring. His exceptional skills in open communication and leading change move the centre towards the goal of exceptional person-centered care.
A key strength is the ease with which John interacts with the residents. He takes time to get to know each of the 71 residents, their life stories, likes and dislikes, and implemented an admission summary so that staff is aware of resident’s personal preferences. He naturally role models gentleness. He supports families and residents in their struggle with loss of abilities or cognition. And he continuously works with families and residents to set priorities of care and care planning.
He represents Devonshire Care Centre at Edmonton Zone Owner/Operator meeting and is an active representative at zone level meetings. Internally John is an active member on the Least Restraint and Falls Prevention Committee, Quality Care Committee, Leadership Committee, Emergency Response Committee, Employee Management Advisory Committee, Labour Relations Committee (UNA), Accreditation Committee and Quality Initiatives Review. John directly leads the End of Life/Comfort Care Committee and provides direct leadership in the PEICES program. In addition, John represents the centre at Park Place Seniors Living to review and set clinical priorities for the entire organization. At their recent Leader’s Forum, he was noted to be a strength and asset to the corporation.
Rita McGregor Excellence in Nursing Education Award
Honouring LPNs nursing educator or a designated preceptor in a clinical setting who consistently demonstrates excellence in providing education in the workplace.
Winner: Darcy Shenfield, LPN
Darcy Schenfield’s leadership and hard work brought her to the role of Educator for the West-Central Region of the Good Samaritan Society’s Education Team.
On the Education Team for the West-Central Region, Darcy Schenfield, LPN, has a pivotal role with the Good Samaritan Society in the development and implementation of education services throughout five different sites. Her innovative, creative and positive learning environment is highly anticipated by her students and staff, resulted in receiving the Innovative and Creativity Award (2003), the Teamwork Award twice (2006 & 2013) from the organization. Additionally, over the last 10 years she has built very trusting and healthy working relationships with her teammates, staff, students, and managers.
Darcy’s contacts with external groups have been of particular benefit. Darcy is very closely aligned with the Alzheimer’s Society and was one of the first Educators to teach the Supportive Pathways Course. With her vast knowledge of Alzheimer’s, and her years working with dementia clients, and unfortunately, a mother who was diagnosed and ultimately passed away with the disease, Darcy is very well known for her passion on this topic. She has been asked many times to speak to families through the Alzheimer’s Society and they have reciprocated to our organization. Other external groups have also benefited. Darcy has worked with Norquest as a Tutor both through the GSS workplace program, and instruct in a casual position since 2004.
Darcy also volunteers her time outside of the workplace. She chairs a not-for-profit agency, Parkland Turning Points, that helps individuals and families who are experiencing domestic violence. She has spent countless hours of her own time creating policies, overseeing operational duties, actively fund raising, and participating in public education. The society is very important to Darcy and she finds it so rewarding to give back to her community and help families struggling with this issue.
Laura Crawford Excellence in Nursing Practice Award
Honouring LPNs who display exemplary nursing knowledge, promote an atmosphere of teamwork, mentor team members, and show pride in the profession.
Winner: Stacey Hall, LPN
Stacey Hall, LPN, has been a nurse at the Stollery Children’s Hospital in Edmonton for the past five years. Using her outstanding clinical and interpersonal skills, Stacey excelled on an extremely busy unit, providing excellent care to both patients and their families.
Two years ago, Stacey joined the Pediatric Neurosurgery team as a research assistant. Without hesitation and with an incredible work ethic, Stacey founded a research program that otherwise would not have existed. Using her extensive medical and surgical knowledge, Stacey has been instrumental in creating the Alberta Pediatric Neurosurgery Database (APND). To do so, Stacey worked tirelessly to understand the needs of Neurosurgeons, Plastic Surgeons, Oncologist, Radiation Oncologists, Nurse Practitioners, Licensed Practical Nurses and Registered Nurses. Working closely with the Alberta Health Services programming team, Stacey created a secure network of information that will allow for better and more efficient care for our patients.
While the APND alone is an amazing contribution, it is merely the tip of the iceberg. Stacey is the assistant director of community initiatives for the Neurosurgery Kids Fund (NKF), supporting children with brain or spinal cord injury. Stacey selflessly volunteers hundreds of hours to co-direct Camp Everest, a sleep away camp, and Lil’ Everest, a family day camp, and the first NKF Polar Express Christmas Party hosting 250 patients and families in an unforgettable night of happiness and joy. Stacey initiated the “Cup of Comfort” program that, last year alone, provided well over 10,000 cups of coffee to caregivers too stressed to leave their child’s bedside. And if that was not enough, she leads our bereavement program.
Stacey is a fantastic ambassador for the Licensed Practical Nurse profession. On a daily basis, Stacey lifts up her colleagues and meaningfully impacts the lives of patients and caregivers, forever changing everyone she comes in contact with for the better.
Interprofessional Development Award
Recognizing non-LPN health care leaders who are instrumental in building quality practice environments.
Winner: Shelley Scorgie, RN
Through her exceptional leadership ability and support of all practitioners, Shelley Scorgie, RN, has created a multidisciplinary team free of traditional hierarchical constraints.
Shelley has been the Manager of the Queen Elizabeth II Hospital Emergency Department in Grande Prairie since 2006. Over the past nine years, Shelley oversaw the renovation of our current ED, the planning of our future hospital ED, and an AHS Lean Quality Improvement Initiative. Our HD has been challenged for many years with staffing and funding shortages, placing tremendous stress on front line staff and physicians. Shelley, with her knowledge of the scope of practice of LPNs, RNs and Paramedics, was able to address some of these shortfalls by incorporating all of these health care professionals into the ED team.
She has been a very strong advocate for LPNs and has developed two highly successful ER patient flow strategies using the full scope of practice for LPNs. The first strategy was a Fast Track Unit staffed by one LPN and one physician. This made huge improvements to patient wait times and was recognized by the AHS Lean Consultants as the most efficient Fast Track Unit they have evaluated in all of North America. The second strategy Shelley supported was the concept of Urgent Treatment Chairs to treat higher acuity ambulatory patients. Shelley staffed this area with a combined LPN and RN nursing team.
Creating a multidisciplinary team environment with a culture of patient care and collaboration was no easy task. The improvements seen in patient care through the implementation of novel patient care strategies in this department were the direct result of Shelley Scorgie and her leadership.
The CLPNA congratulations all nominees and recipients!
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