Esteban Huerta

Esteban Huerta, RN III, is a do-er, not a bystander, caring for his Critical Care patients with attention to the details of their comfort and dignity: He sees something that needs to be done, and he makes it happen.

For those qualities, both a co-worker and the daughter of a former patient nominated Huerta to receive the DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses and he was selected by the RNs of the Caring Circle committee at Kaiser Permanente Fresno as the August/Sept 2011 DAISY recipient.

"I thank Kaiser for having a person like Esteban as an employee, and I compliment him for all the attention he (gave) my father," said the nomination from the daughter of a newly diagnosed cancer patient.

A coworker's nomination said, "Esteban always takes meticulous care of his patients and goes the extra mile to make sure they are neat and clean. There are truly too many incidents to name where his care and special attention have been above and beyond great care for the patient. His care is extraordinary."

The nomination cited Esteban's willingness to take on difficult tasks to advocate for patients. "I am so proud to have him in the CCU. His care makes a difference in people's lives," the nomination said.

Huerta, a nurse for nine years, has worked at Kaiser Permamente Fresno Medical Center for more than four years. His parents are both nurses, his stepsister is a nurse, and his stepbrother is a physician. "Health care kind of runs in the family," he said matter-of-factly.

He likes patient care and he wants to help people, Huerta said. "I try to do things right from the beginning. I think I'm supposed to do a good job, and (helping the patient with) hygiene is very important. I try to be organized and set an example.”

"One of my main things is that I don't like the bystander approach. If there's a problem it should be addressed. So I do what I think I should do."