... One morning, a nurse came upon a scene that was so "Vernaesque". As a charge RN, she had taken on a change of shift admission so that a busy nurse could catch up with her charting. She found her doing her own charting while humming to the toddler in her arms, now resting quietly on her shoulder so that an overly exhausted mother could have a needed break from the fussy child.

Her multitasking is a harmony of hard work that masterfully gets the job done and excellent and thoughtful customer service with an able and lovely demeanor that immediately allows a stressed parent to trust and feel their child is safe and confident in her care. It is not unusual for a patient or family to request Verna as their nurse after having experienced her brand of care. She has a calming effect about her and both the patients and their families enjoy her as their caregiver. As a passionate, empathetic, knowledgeable, and hardworking bedside expert, she lovingly offers the care she would expect for her own two boys.

Verna's peers find it a joy to work with her. She is a supportive colleague, always offering her help as a resource or just an extra hand. She notices things before they need doing and offers her interventions generously as to not burden the struggling nurse. Her manager says of Verna, "When I think of a daisy, I think of a dose of sunshine, simple and authentic and generous in its ability to bring joy and comfort where it is lacking. That defines Verna Gapuz. To her coworkers and her patients she lovingly cares for on our unit, Verna is calm, joyful, caring, helpful and compassionate.

During her 14 years as a nurse on this unit, she has delivered excellent care as well as outstanding teamwork, leadership, and mentoring. They say big things come in small packages and Verna Gapuz' heart and talents prove this true! It is my honor to support the recognition of Verna Gapuz as The DAISY Award Honoree.