The first ever recipient of the ONL/DAISY Nurse Leader of the Year Award is Wendy Napolitano. Wendy has been a nurse leader for over 5 years and was a 2021 Daisy Nurse Leader Award recipient. She is a passionate, energetic leader who brings an upbeat attitude to her work and demonstrates what it is to be true change agent, setting high standards in departments she leads. Initially leading her critical care unit as the manager, Wendy is the current director of Nursing for Critical Care, director of the STAR, Specially Trained and Responsive, Team responsible for supporting inpatient nursing and intravascular access and line care, the regional Director of Wound Care, and the Inpatient Dialysis Liaison for the Hospital of Central Connecticut. Under Wendy’s directorship, the critical care culture is thriving.

Through her leadership, Wendy has developed a synergy that incorporates improved care delivery. She has introduced new services, reduced infections, and improved the nursing turnover rate to less than 10%. The healthy work environment that Wendy has championed has improved staff engagement, decreased need for contracted nurses to zero, and established a 2:1 nurse to patient ratio. Her innovative plan to provide critical care assistance in the inpatient units has proven remarkable, leading to improved collaboration among staff and providers, improved health care delivery, critical care response to acute patient events, and real time coaching and mentoring for novice staff in need of support. She was the catalyst for incredible synergy on the inpatient units.

Her leadership efforts have resulted in the formation of a Regional Ethics Committee, and staff driven committees such as the Intravenous Access Committee and the Pressure Ulcer Prevention, PUP, Committee in the critical care unit at the Hospital of Central Connecticut. Wendy is also on an area board where she is able to enhance the image of nursing in the community. Wendy is adamant in her search for ways to grow personally and professionally, and she supports her staff to accomplish the same growth. By caring for and supporting her staff, she has helped them to broaden their own practice skills. As a result, they are better positioned to care for the patients they serve. We are thrilled to recognize Wendy with the first ONL/DAISY Nurse Leader of the Year Award.