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LEWISBURG -- Meghan Simmonds, RN, was presented the DAISY Award for Nursing Excellence after receiving two separate nominations for the honor.
An employee of Evangelical Community Hospital's obstetrics unit, The Family Place, since September 2014, Simmonds consistently provides excellent care for her patients. In the same time period, Simmonds was nominated by two different patients as they went through their birthing experiences under her watch.
Both Lauren Smith and Kali Strohecker, an Evangelical employee and patient respectively, nominated Simmonds and shared their experiences with the DAISY committee for award consideration. In recognition of her double nomination, Simmonds was presented the award along with a special multi-flowered DAISY pin.
In the first nomination, Smith shared, "From the moment her shift started, Meghan's treatment was beyond the call."
"Meghan truly made me believe that I was capable of birthing a baby naturally," she said. "Her words were so intentional and inspiring, and she seemed to custom fit her approach to my needs and the needs of the midwife. My birth experience was made special because of her. Meghan's excellence and care extended past birth, as she walked me through many big emotions and made me feel like the most fantastic mother for this child."
"Meghan is a superstar and I count myself lucky that I was able to be in her fantastic care," Smith added.
In the second nomination, Strohecker shared, "Meghan was on top of our care and listened to any concerns I had."
"She was so genuine the entire time! We talked about our kiddos and how much we both enjoy working at Evan," Strohecker said. "Around 8:15 p.m., they examined me again and noticed I progressed. I quickly called my husband once we knew that the C-section would be happening that night. Meghan made sure they weren't going to start without my husband when anesthesia came in to wheel me down to the operating room. She made the promise to get him down there as soon as he arrived. Sure enough, she did!"
'When Myles came out, he had some issues, but between Meghan and Dr. Dino Baca, I knew he was in amazing hands," she added.