Denise Fichera, RN was promoted to Facility Administrator in March 2022 in MM Region 2. Denise took over a clinic that was struggling with healthy teams, clinical outcomes, and staffing. For a new FA, the role itself can be challenging, and with the added factors at her clinic, we knew that it would be a massive undertaking. From day one, Denise remained optimistic and excited about creating and leading positive change in her center and the larger VSA. There are so many times that Denise has gone above and beyond to serve her patients. She has worked the floor countless times over the last year to ensure that her team is stable and has no staffing gaps. She has been an extraordinary resource for her fellow FAs, many of whom are also new to the role. If I had to choose a particular time that Denise provided exceptional care and compassion as a nurse it would be the following:

In September 2022, a sister facility had an emergency closure that was anticipated to last 4-6 weeks. This meant that there would be 46 patients that needed to find another facility to dialyze. As we know, dialysis is a life-saving treatment, and incredibly important that we provide our patients with their treatments three days a week. The VSA was struggling with staffing and it was unclear how we were going to absorb all of these patients. This particular clinic did not have a Facility Administrator at the time, but Denise stepped up immediately and started making plans. She reached out to all of her fellow FAs to see how many patients each clinic could take for the 4-6 week period. It became clear that we didn’t have enough chairs across our area to accommodate all of these patients. Denise was not going to let that stop her. Denise met with her team at the Goose Creek facility and rallied their support and opened a third shift on MWF. Denise was also struggling with staffing, and knew that this meant that she would be working her floor almost every day during this period, and she didn’t hesitate. Within the day, Denise had committed to accommodating over half of the patients from the sister clinic. As the weeks progressed, Denise worked her floor 3-4 times a week and maintained the best and most positive attitude imaginable. When the sister clinic reopened 6 weeks later, there were quite a few patients that didn’t want to leave Denise and her clinic. She had provided such compassionate and amazing care to these patients. Many of the patients felt like they had found a new home. Denise is largely responsible for being able to confidently and compassionately care for 24 additional patients during an incredibly tumultuous time, and for this, our entire patient population and DaVita team could not be more proud of her. 

Denise is beyond deserving of an award such as the DAISY Award because the story above is one of so many that I could highlight. In the face of challenging times, Denise is most concerned about providing the patients with the care they need and deserve. The level of humility that she shows on a daily basis with her team and her patients is unmatched. She makes an incredibly powerful difference every day and we are so proud of her and everything she has accomplished.