June 2026 Honoree
Shaquan Dye, RN
A nurse assigned to the Malcom Randall VA Medical Center Perioperative Department has been selected as the DAISY Award Winner for June 2026.
Thank you for letting me briefly share a meaningful moment that happened on Friday. As I finished rounding in the ED and headed up Elevator B, Perioperative Nurse Manager Shaquan Dye called out to me requesting assistance. She was headed to the ED waiting room with a beleaguered-looking Veteran in a wheelchair. She had been in the canteen when she came across this Veteran, who voiced some needs. Despite her very busy responsibilities as a nurse manager, she took the time to find him a wheelchair and personally bring him to the ED.
The Veteran shared that he had been in a coma for two weeks and was recently discharged from UF Shands. When he returned to his apartment, he discovered his electricity had been turned off. He mentioned that he needed rehabilitation but was primarily concerned with finding resources to restore the electricity in his home. When he was offered the opportunity to check into the ED to address his rehabilitation needs, he declined, remaining focused on his utilities.
I went to the ED Social Worker, who reviewed his chart and found notes from the HUD-VASH Case Manager documenting that he had been trying to locate this Veteran for the past week and a half. She also confirmed that he had recently been discharged from Shands following treatment for acute encephalopathy. The Social Worker spoke with the Veteran and was able not only to reconnect him with his case manager, who told him that many people had been worried about him, but also to have him checked into the ED and ultimately admitted to 3 West to address his complicated situation.
This Veteran remains safe and receiving the care he needs on our third floor today, all because Shaquan took the time in the canteen to listen to a Veteran in distress, find him a wheelchair, and bring him to the ED for further assistance. Shaquan teaches us all that sometimes you don't know the significance of the moment you've owned until after the fact.
Kudos to Shaquan, the Social Worker, and the Case Manager for being on the front lines of connecting Veterans to care that can save their lives.
Thank you for letting me briefly share a meaningful moment that happened on Friday. As I finished rounding in the ED and headed up Elevator B, Perioperative Nurse Manager Shaquan Dye called out to me requesting assistance. She was headed to the ED waiting room with a beleaguered-looking Veteran in a wheelchair. She had been in the canteen when she came across this Veteran, who voiced some needs. Despite her very busy responsibilities as a nurse manager, she took the time to find him a wheelchair and personally bring him to the ED.
The Veteran shared that he had been in a coma for two weeks and was recently discharged from UF Shands. When he returned to his apartment, he discovered his electricity had been turned off. He mentioned that he needed rehabilitation but was primarily concerned with finding resources to restore the electricity in his home. When he was offered the opportunity to check into the ED to address his rehabilitation needs, he declined, remaining focused on his utilities.
I went to the ED Social Worker, who reviewed his chart and found notes from the HUD-VASH Case Manager documenting that he had been trying to locate this Veteran for the past week and a half. She also confirmed that he had recently been discharged from Shands following treatment for acute encephalopathy. The Social Worker spoke with the Veteran and was able not only to reconnect him with his case manager, who told him that many people had been worried about him, but also to have him checked into the ED and ultimately admitted to 3 West to address his complicated situation.
This Veteran remains safe and receiving the care he needs on our third floor today, all because Shaquan took the time in the canteen to listen to a Veteran in distress, find him a wheelchair, and bring him to the ED for further assistance. Shaquan teaches us all that sometimes you don't know the significance of the moment you've owned until after the fact.
Kudos to Shaquan, the Social Worker, and the Case Manager for being on the front lines of connecting Veterans to care that can save their lives.
Thank you, Shaquan, for your exceptional compassion, advocacy, and dedication to your patients. You truly make a difference.
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