Joni Wade
August 2025
Joni
Wade
,
MSN, RN, NE-BC
Medical Telemetry
Bon Secours Memorial Regional Medical Center
Mechanicsville
,
VA
United States
Throughout her career, Joni has also been a passionate advocate for evidence-based practice and policy that advances patient outcomes and strengthens the profession. Whether mentoring new graduates, engaging with her church and community, or advocating at the organizational level, she consistently brings visibility to the vital work of nurses.
It is with great admiration and deep respect that I nominate Joni Wade, MSN, RN, NE-BC for the DAISY Lifetime Achievement Award, honoring her decades of transformative leadership, mentorship, and dedication to nursing. Throughout her remarkable career, Joni has made extraordinary contributions to patient care, nursing practice, and the broader healthcare community—truly exemplifying the qualities this award celebrates.
As a colleague, I have witnessed firsthand the profound impact Joni has had on the nursing profession through her commitment to excellence, education, growth, and advocacy. Her story is one of enduring service, innovation, and leadership. Over more than 40 years, she has shaped nursing practice through clinical excellence, operational leadership, and pioneering work in clinical informatics. She has mentored countless nurses, implemented enterprise-wide initiatives, and consistently elevates the visibility and impact of nursing—embodying the spirit of The DAISY Lifetime Achievement Award.
Joni received her Diploma in Nursing from the Richmond Memorial Hospital School of Nursing in 1981 and began her career in the Emergency Department at Richmond Memorial Hospital. Over the next decade, she honed her clinical skills, advanced her knowledge, assumed leadership roles, and completed her BSN at MCV in 1990. She continued her career with Bon Secours, serving in leadership roles across Quality, Regulatory, Patient Safety, Inpatient Surgical, and Cardiopulmonary Care, while also earning her MSN in Leadership from Walden University in 2009.
Informatics became Joni’s next area of influence. She held multiple leadership roles in Clinical Informatics and successfully led Bon Secours Virginia’s transition to a fully electronic health record. Later, as Administrative Director of Clinical Informatics, she expanded optimization efforts enterprise-wide and oversaw the achievement of the prestigious HIMSS Stage 7 designation—an international recognition of excellence in using technology to improve healthcare. She also implemented innovative communication systems to support continuity of care during unplanned downtimes.
Beyond informatics, Joni has consistently advanced patient safety and nursing practice. She facilitated the implementation of Rapid Response Teams, developed nursing peer review processes, led construction and expansion projects, prepared for numerous Joint Commission surveys, and played a key role in the transition from Richmond Memorial to Memorial Regional Medical Center. In every setting, she has exemplified lifelong learning, servant leadership, and visionary innovation.
In 2019, Joni returned to the bedside as Nurse Director of the Emergency Department at Memorial Regional Medical Center, leading her team through the unprecedented challenges of COVID-19 with steadiness, compassion, and resilience. Two years later, she transitioned to lead the Medical Telemetry Unit, a role she embraced with characteristic humility, noting that she serves “where God calls her to serve.” Under her leadership, the unit expanded from 15 to 29 beds, strengthened its culture, and became a thriving environment where nurses are encouraged to “Learn, Grow, and Fly.” She has fostered teamwork, inclusion, and pride, symbolized by a World Map in the unit hallway where each nurse pins their country of origin.
Throughout her career, Joni has also been a passionate advocate for evidence-based practice and policy that advances patient outcomes and strengthens the profession. Whether mentoring new graduates, engaging with her church and community, or advocating at the organizational level, she consistently brings visibility to the vital work of nurses.
Joni is the very definition of a servant leader. It is not uncommon to find her rounding on patients and families, coaching a new nurse through a challenge, or offering support and encouragement in the form of a kind word—or a much-needed hug.
Joni will retire at the end of August after more than four decades of extraordinary service. Having worked alongside her for over 25 years, I can say with certainty that the void she leaves will be immense. Yet her influence will endure in the countless nurses she has mentored, the patients whose lives she has touched, and the culture of excellence she has inspired.
She is truly a beacon of excellence, faith, hope, and love—and an ideal recipient of The DAISY Lifetime Achievement Award.
As a colleague, I have witnessed firsthand the profound impact Joni has had on the nursing profession through her commitment to excellence, education, growth, and advocacy. Her story is one of enduring service, innovation, and leadership. Over more than 40 years, she has shaped nursing practice through clinical excellence, operational leadership, and pioneering work in clinical informatics. She has mentored countless nurses, implemented enterprise-wide initiatives, and consistently elevates the visibility and impact of nursing—embodying the spirit of The DAISY Lifetime Achievement Award.
Joni received her Diploma in Nursing from the Richmond Memorial Hospital School of Nursing in 1981 and began her career in the Emergency Department at Richmond Memorial Hospital. Over the next decade, she honed her clinical skills, advanced her knowledge, assumed leadership roles, and completed her BSN at MCV in 1990. She continued her career with Bon Secours, serving in leadership roles across Quality, Regulatory, Patient Safety, Inpatient Surgical, and Cardiopulmonary Care, while also earning her MSN in Leadership from Walden University in 2009.
Informatics became Joni’s next area of influence. She held multiple leadership roles in Clinical Informatics and successfully led Bon Secours Virginia’s transition to a fully electronic health record. Later, as Administrative Director of Clinical Informatics, she expanded optimization efforts enterprise-wide and oversaw the achievement of the prestigious HIMSS Stage 7 designation—an international recognition of excellence in using technology to improve healthcare. She also implemented innovative communication systems to support continuity of care during unplanned downtimes.
Beyond informatics, Joni has consistently advanced patient safety and nursing practice. She facilitated the implementation of Rapid Response Teams, developed nursing peer review processes, led construction and expansion projects, prepared for numerous Joint Commission surveys, and played a key role in the transition from Richmond Memorial to Memorial Regional Medical Center. In every setting, she has exemplified lifelong learning, servant leadership, and visionary innovation.
In 2019, Joni returned to the bedside as Nurse Director of the Emergency Department at Memorial Regional Medical Center, leading her team through the unprecedented challenges of COVID-19 with steadiness, compassion, and resilience. Two years later, she transitioned to lead the Medical Telemetry Unit, a role she embraced with characteristic humility, noting that she serves “where God calls her to serve.” Under her leadership, the unit expanded from 15 to 29 beds, strengthened its culture, and became a thriving environment where nurses are encouraged to “Learn, Grow, and Fly.” She has fostered teamwork, inclusion, and pride, symbolized by a World Map in the unit hallway where each nurse pins their country of origin.
Throughout her career, Joni has also been a passionate advocate for evidence-based practice and policy that advances patient outcomes and strengthens the profession. Whether mentoring new graduates, engaging with her church and community, or advocating at the organizational level, she consistently brings visibility to the vital work of nurses.
Joni is the very definition of a servant leader. It is not uncommon to find her rounding on patients and families, coaching a new nurse through a challenge, or offering support and encouragement in the form of a kind word—or a much-needed hug.
Joni will retire at the end of August after more than four decades of extraordinary service. Having worked alongside her for over 25 years, I can say with certainty that the void she leaves will be immense. Yet her influence will endure in the countless nurses she has mentored, the patients whose lives she has touched, and the culture of excellence she has inspired.
She is truly a beacon of excellence, faith, hope, and love—and an ideal recipient of The DAISY Lifetime Achievement Award.