Tiffany Maher
December 2023
Tiffany
Maher
,
RN
Management Support, Patient Flow, Float Team & Nurse Staffing Office
Essentia Health Fargo
Fargo
,
ND
United States
Tiffany shares her vision with us and collaborates with the team, so we feel like a part of it all. It means the world to have a leader who leads but also includes her team in the day-to-day decisions.
At first, when I started writing this, I thought it would be difficult to find new things to talk about for my DAISY Nurse Leader nominee as I poured my heart out for her nomination last year for a value award. But that couldn’t be farther from the truth. Tiffany Maher is extraordinary. An Extraordinary Nurse Leader ‘’creates an environment where attributes of trust, compassion, mutual respect, continued professional development, and ethical behavior are modeled and supported”.
Tiff’s door is always open, even when it’s technically shut due to a meeting or such. You know you’re one knock away from her smile and assistance, giving her mutual respect. In February of this year, the leadership roles in our department were clearly defined. Our supervisor was dubbed “Lead the Shift,” and that’s exactly what she does. She’s a mom for us. She makes sure we keep our licenses up to date, hounds us for completing education, participating in committees, flu shots, and makes sure we don’t miss out on using our PTO for holidays and such. Tiff always makes sure our team knows we are important and thought of during life changes and leads diaper drives and card giving, showing compassion for what we each go through in life individually and bringing us together as a team. She models professional development by developing standard work when we see a new need or improving previous policies. You won’t get away without getting your flu shot or waiver by the due date because she is right there to remind you. Sometimes, we take her for granted because even though we are all adults, we’ve never had to think too hard about if we are missing an education or requirement for our job because Tiff knows and will get ahold of you. She also holds us accountable, though, like a mother would.
“Motivates staff with a shared vision and enthusiasm to achieve better outcomes for themselves and for their patients.”
We’ve been through a lot of changes in our department over the last 5 or more years. It was a rough patch with policy changes, leadership changes, Covid, taking on more and more, and our team was mentally and physically drained. Tiffany stepped up. She had a vision for us (with our other leaders) of what kind of unit we needed to be and, by trial and error, how to get there. A HUGE win for our team that boosted our morale and enthusiasm was when we moved to a larger office with windows and space and had a better working environment. She was pivotal in this process of planning and implementing. She kept us informed on timelines and sent out surveys to have the team help with decisions and colors. She never just does something and says this is how it is going to be. She shares her vision with us and collaborates with the team, so we feel like a part of it all. It means the world to have a leader who leads but also includes her team in the day-to-day decisions.
“Promote and enhance the image of nursing within the organization, the community, and the profession.”
The last thing I’d like to talk about is how much Tiff does to promote and enhance the image of nursing in our organization, our community, and the profession as a whole. Tiff is involved in SO many committees. She is the face of the DAISY committee. She does it all. It gives her such satisfaction to support and commend nurses and those who are nominated for helping hands. She enhances our community by participating in career fairs, educational events, community benefits, and everything that is asked of her to assist with our organization.
Tiff doesn’t say no. She continues to add more and more to her plate to make sure her departments and those under her are taken care of. She recruits like crazy to get nursing students in our doors as sitters and float NAs and mentors them. She is always looking for the next one to offer an internship to and always looking ahead to our future here at Essentia. I cannot think of another more deserving individual who lives our values every day; she’s at work and is an unsung hero who needs to be recognized. When I move on from this department, I will miss her terribly. Thank you.
Tiff’s door is always open, even when it’s technically shut due to a meeting or such. You know you’re one knock away from her smile and assistance, giving her mutual respect. In February of this year, the leadership roles in our department were clearly defined. Our supervisor was dubbed “Lead the Shift,” and that’s exactly what she does. She’s a mom for us. She makes sure we keep our licenses up to date, hounds us for completing education, participating in committees, flu shots, and makes sure we don’t miss out on using our PTO for holidays and such. Tiff always makes sure our team knows we are important and thought of during life changes and leads diaper drives and card giving, showing compassion for what we each go through in life individually and bringing us together as a team. She models professional development by developing standard work when we see a new need or improving previous policies. You won’t get away without getting your flu shot or waiver by the due date because she is right there to remind you. Sometimes, we take her for granted because even though we are all adults, we’ve never had to think too hard about if we are missing an education or requirement for our job because Tiff knows and will get ahold of you. She also holds us accountable, though, like a mother would.
“Motivates staff with a shared vision and enthusiasm to achieve better outcomes for themselves and for their patients.”
We’ve been through a lot of changes in our department over the last 5 or more years. It was a rough patch with policy changes, leadership changes, Covid, taking on more and more, and our team was mentally and physically drained. Tiffany stepped up. She had a vision for us (with our other leaders) of what kind of unit we needed to be and, by trial and error, how to get there. A HUGE win for our team that boosted our morale and enthusiasm was when we moved to a larger office with windows and space and had a better working environment. She was pivotal in this process of planning and implementing. She kept us informed on timelines and sent out surveys to have the team help with decisions and colors. She never just does something and says this is how it is going to be. She shares her vision with us and collaborates with the team, so we feel like a part of it all. It means the world to have a leader who leads but also includes her team in the day-to-day decisions.
“Promote and enhance the image of nursing within the organization, the community, and the profession.”
The last thing I’d like to talk about is how much Tiff does to promote and enhance the image of nursing in our organization, our community, and the profession as a whole. Tiff is involved in SO many committees. She is the face of the DAISY committee. She does it all. It gives her such satisfaction to support and commend nurses and those who are nominated for helping hands. She enhances our community by participating in career fairs, educational events, community benefits, and everything that is asked of her to assist with our organization.
Tiff doesn’t say no. She continues to add more and more to her plate to make sure her departments and those under her are taken care of. She recruits like crazy to get nursing students in our doors as sitters and float NAs and mentors them. She is always looking for the next one to offer an internship to and always looking ahead to our future here at Essentia. I cannot think of another more deserving individual who lives our values every day; she’s at work and is an unsung hero who needs to be recognized. When I move on from this department, I will miss her terribly. Thank you.