Congrats to our recent DAISY and Bee Award winners

Congrats to our recent DAISY and Bee Award winners
We’re proud to celebrate these incredible team members who go above and beyond every day. Check out their stories and nominations below:

Taylor Simpson – Transition to Practice Facilitator
Taylor is a rockstar in onboarding and orientation! She’s redesigned sessions to make them interactive and engaging, supports every orientee, and even took on the huge task of welcoming 150 international nurses—creating processes, hosting events, and pairing them with mentors. Her passion and kindness shine through in everything she does.

Here is her nomination:
"Taylor is such a phenomenal NPD practitioner. She has impacted orientation here at Carilion in so many ways. She is a learning facilitator and has redesigned onboarding for increased interactivity and flow of the session and engages students so well when she is teaching. She consistently ensures that orientees are supported and meeting orientation requirements. Her ideas and knowledge allow her to excel in development and ongoing process improvement. Her charismatic personality, kindness, and willingness to help everyone makes her excel in her mentor role building solid impactful relationship. This shows in all of the feedback she has received from orientees. One stated, "She was amazing! She followed up each and every time at the perfect time! She made me feel welcomed to the team. She’s a delight to have, especially knowing I could reach out to her with any question." Taylor recently took on the enormous job of supporting the international nurses as they come into this organization. This is no easy feat as there are 150 of them! Half of those have joined us over the last two months, and the other half she is preparing for. Taylor was very passionate about this project, and it shows. From ensuring that all of the pre-hire tasks have been completed, building processes of communication between the vendor company and Carilion for orientation progress, creating welcome events for these individuals, supporting them through orientation, and most importantly helping them find community here by pairing them with a mentor from their home country! They have said she has been such a blessing to them. Thank you, Taylor, for everything you do."

Donna Deadrick – Clinical Educator for Peds Group at Tanglewood
Donna brings creativity and heart to education! Whether she’s turning learning into a circus or dressing up to make kids smile, she keeps staff engaged and informed while going above and beyond for the children in our community. Her servant’s heart and dedication make her an incredible asset to Carilion.

Here are her nominations:
"Donna is one of the most creative people I’ve ever worked with. She makes learning fun for the participants to keep them engaged. She may show up dressed as a realtor Agent and serve you cookies as you’re learning, or may have you come to a circus rodeo to do Circus related activities as you are learning. She keeps employees engaged, on their toes, and practicing evidence based medicine. Donna is the best!"
"Donna is very thorough, helpful, thoughtful and knowledgeable in her role as educator. She keeps everyone up to date on training and goes out of her way to make work an enjoyable place to be."
"Donna has a servants heart and is always looking for ways to help her community and the children we serve here in our clinic. From organizing events, dressing up to make children smile or just lending a hand. Donna does a great job sharing training education with the HAAS as well as nursing. She wants everyone to feel welcomed and included. I nominate her for this year's nurse educator of the year."
"Donna does so much for Carilion children. She goes above and beyond to ensure that the children in out community are taken care of with school supplies, etc. Whether she realizes it or not, she is a perfect asset to Carilion."

Jennie Higgins – CPDF for 8 CST PCU
Jennie is the ultimate nurse educator—leading with dedication and expertise. She ensures her team is confident in caring for complex patients, organizes major training initiatives like the CVI Tower transition, and even steps in for clinical shifts when needed. Jennie is a mentor, advocate, and role model who truly embodies the DAISY spirit!

Here is her nomination:
"It is with great enthusiasm that I nominate Jennie Higgins, CDPF, for the 2025 DAISY Nurse Educator of the Year Award. Jennie exemplifies the very best of what it means to be a nurse educator with her dedication, leadership, and unwavering support for her team on 8 CST PCU have made an immeasurable impact on both staff and patient outcomes. Jennie plays a vital role in educating, mentoring, and empowering the nursing staff of our unit, which cares for a highly complex patient population. This includes vascular and cardiac surgery post-op patients, as well as patients with tracheostomies, ventilators, epicardial pacing wires, LVADs, sternal wound care, chest tubes, and endotool monitoring, each of which requires advanced clinical competency. To ensure staff maintain the high level of skill needed, Jennie leads quarterly education sessions and individual check-offs for every team member. She has been instrumental in ensuring that each nurse is not only competent but confident in delivering high-acuity care. Most recently, Jennie played a pivotal role in preparing our team for the move to the CVI Tower. She coordinated and facilitated a comprehensive, three-day education series for every employee. Jennie's efforts ensured a seamless transition and minimized disruptions to patient care, reflecting her strong leadership and foresight. Despite her demanding role as an educator, Jennie continues to pick up clinical shifts when the unit is short-staffed. Her willingness to step in and work alongside her peers speaks volumes about her character and dedication. She remains "boots on the ground," reinforcing the respect and admiration of her colleagues. Her presence at the bedside not only boosts morale but also demonstrates her deep understanding of the realities of patient care. Jennie is more than an educator; she is a mentor, advocate, and role model. Her contributions to our unit and the broader nursing community are invaluable. The unwavering support she provides does not go unnoticed and is felt daily by everyone she teaches and supports. It is with great pride and heartfelt appreciation that I nominate Jennie Higgins for this well-deserved recognition. She truly embodies the spirit of the DAISY Nurse Educator of the Year Award."