Few nurses exemplify all of the traits required of the nursing leadership award. After all, it is quite a feat, is it not? Those few tend to hold a special place in the hearts of others. The reason for that? They are genuinely concerned and care about the well-being of others. They oftentimes remain in the background. They have a humility about them that many of us admire. Their quiet virtue and strength shine bright. Their ego allows them to focus on others rather than themselves. It is about maintaining a curiosity that allows us to listen and be present in the moment. It is about being kind to others; setting aside the judgment and harsh words. I cannot think of anyone who displays the attributes I admire more than Hannah Blasdel, R.N. This young woman shines brighter than any other nurse I have seen in the past several years. Her willingness to lead her UBC (taking on such projects as the ABCDE Bundle, electrolyte protocol, etc.) while serving as Co-Chair for our Practice Council is quite impressive.

Hannah played an instrumental role while we were on the Magnet journey and she involved the ICU nurses and support personnel in the effort. She made sure we were informed and knowledgeable about all things related to Magnet. ICU is not for the faint of heart. You have to exhibit strong critical thinking skills and realize that, sometimes, God says "no" even though we have done our best. This has happened more than I care to share during the pandemic. Hannah, in the midst of some very dark hours in our organization, has managed to provide high quality and compassionate care while leading her team as a Charge Nurse during a very demanding year. She is a role model in so many ways and she creates an environment that fosters care, compassion, and exemplary practice at all times. Hannah's behavioral characteristics include positivity and a professional demeanor that is unsurpassed.

As a member of the ICU team Hannah holds herself and others accountable on a consistent basis yet she is available and responsive to the needs of her team. She will come in extra to ensure we have adequate staffing and she serves as a heart nurse; capable of taking very high-acuity patients and ensuring they receive great care. She is an extraordinary person and she just makes you feel proud to be a nurse. She keeps the bar raised and she is willing to do anything she asks of others. Hannah's willingness to mentor those less seasoned while motivating the entire team to improve outcomes as our UBC Chair required a LOT of time and effort on her part. You see, Hannah works the 7 pm shift, yet she arrived on time and consistently to every meeting and every event in support of the ICU team and in support of Baxter Regional. Her enthusiasm for improving processes and outcomes at the bedside (for the patients, the community, and clinical nurses) is contagious. She has proven repeatedly how important quality and safety are, as she addresses such important topics with the team as CAUTI, CLABSI, etc. When doing so, she motivates others as she shares her vision for an improved work environment where we take every opportunity we can to improve the patient experience.

Hannah is compassionate, professional, accessible, and extraordinary on so many levels. Her potential knows no bounds and I have heard she is a future CNO in the making. I am not at all surprised as she is such an extraordinary person. She has earned the trust and mutual respect that few others have achieved. She promotes our profession every chance she gets and she models ethical behavior at all times. Hannah promotes the principles of exemplary professional practice via collaboration with other units and interprofessional communication. She makes evidence-based decisions because her sense of inquiry ensures she knows what best practice is yet she is humble enough to ask for help if needed. Baxter Regional Medical Center is lucky to have Hannah as an employee and I am hopeful she receives the recognition she deserves. She is a leader, a colleague, a nurse, and a true friend. Nursing is not just a job to Hannah. It, truly, is a calling and I cannot think of anyone more deserving. Please consider Hannah Blasdel for the Nursing Leadership Award. She makes us proud to be a nurse!

I think Hannah is a great team player, a great charge nurse, and definitely a great patient advocate. I have seen Hannah conquer so many challenging tasks in the ICU and for the most part, had a great outcome for the patient. There was one night when we had a post-op CABG who was not doing the best. Hannah spent most of that night trying to figure out what we were missing, why this patient was not doing well, and why his blood pressure and heart rate were so low. After a while, Hannah finally figured out what was wrong and immediately call Dr. E, who called in the heart team and took the patient back to fix the problem.

When in charge of the ICU, Hannah constantly offers help to the other nurses all night long. She just jumps in, you never have to ask her for help. She always helps complete tasks and always keeps everyone calm during emergencies. She usually solves most of the problems we have or is able to offer advice on different situations. Hannah keeps this place pretty contained when she is here, although some nights are very bad, we usually get through them because of her help.

Hannah is one of the biggest patient advocates and is always looking for ways to make her patients comfortable and feel safe. If a patient has a concern, she is always reassuring them that we are giving the best care we can and helps the patient feel better about things. She always seems to get the sickest patients we have and always seems to stabilize the patient before the day crew comes around.

We have had several really sick patients such as ruptured AAA's, post-op CABG's, septic patients, and COVID patients. She is constantly concerned about these patients while at the same time being concerned about the other patients in the ICU. Several nights we have had two or three COVID patients in the same night go south fast. She was running from room to room constantly trying to help the nurses. In one room we were intubating one of the COVID patients and in the next room, we were fixing to code. Three rooms down, the previously intubated patient for several days, maxed out on their vent settings, while prone, was desaturating. Unfortunately, with our negative pressure fans and our CAPR helmets, it was very hard to hear the doctor on the EICU camera. Each time she came out of one room, she would have to call EICU from the desk to be able to get orders from the doctor and after getting orders would go to the next room to help the primary nurse stabilize the patient. These are just a few reasons I believe that Hannah deserves a DAISY. She always goes up and beyond the standard for her patients and co-workers. She always makes herself available for advice and help to everyone around her.