Andrea Arns RN has worked at Harrison Medical Center for 20 years. Andrea is an outstanding role model for kindness each day at work and also in the community. She is always soft-spoken even in the most difficult situations and is fondly called “milk and cookies” by her nursing peers.

On any given day you can see and hear Andrea greeting our patients and their families. “Hi, I’m Andrea, one of the nurses here, how can we help you today?” That greeting is always accompanied by the touch of her hand, a warm smile, and a focused listener. She learns about the patient’s concerns and about their lives. She tells her patients what to expect during the visit and with kind humor often laughs with her patients during their care. This is how she meets every patient, every time. If it is a time of celebration Andrea includes the patient in banana splits, cookies, and holiday food if it is allowed in their diet and does interfere with their treatment. If she learns that it is the patient’s birthday, she tries to find the patient’s favorite desert. I believe that Andrea is one of the reasons Silverdale has had high Patient Satisfaction scores.

In the community, Andrea is an advocate for homeless teens and adults. This year she made sure that homeless teens in Port Orchard had warm hats, gloves, and socks in a large Christmas stocking that also contained many other treats that she collected and organized. Each year she organizes and helps serve a holiday meal for homeless adults who live at Benedict House.

Andrea has been a mentor for many RN residents over the years. She has a flock of now successful RNs who came to love ED nursing even more because of the support and encouragement they received from Andrea.

It would truly be fitting and a great honor for Andrea to receive the Daisy award. I am honored to have been Andrea’s manager for most of her career. She is an amazing, selfless, beautiful person who sees good in all, nurtures the needs of many, and finds joy in giving of herself.