Members Making a Difference

Congratulations to Lynndy Gately in receiving a Daisy Award for Leadership 

I received my Daisy Award for leadership.  I was taking a palliative care class where we could create our own project. I chose to create a healing garden for the family I was giving care to. A little bit of a back story. The parents were expecting triplets. One was miscarried. The other two were born at 22 weeks and 5 days. Dad almost had to choose whether the kids or his wife lived. Fortunately they all pulled through in the end. In 2018 his wife died unexpectedly left to raise 2 autistic special needs children. I started working in their house in 2019.

I will walk you through the healing garden. The kids and I  made a memorial plaque for their sister who had passed away. We used pink to represent the playfulness of children. They made white hand prints for the butterfly wings. White represents the innocence of a child. We chose a butterfly because in some cultures it represents hope, comfort and positivity. At the top is her ribbon from the hospital. The bottom has a special message to her from the heart. 

Below that is a five shelf stand. The top shelf has lucky bamboo to bring them luck and the green represents his late wife’s favorite color. I painted a flower pot with kingdom heart characters on it in memory of her favorite characters. It contained a bonsai tree representing harmony, inner peace, balance, and positivity, Two Lillie’s since they were her favorite flowers. They are surrounded by rocks that I painted words of positivity on. Dad has told me that no one has ever done anything like this for him.  It brings him happiness!

My nursing background is Working in a plasma center, pediatric Home-Care  and as a Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner. I have just started a virtual art studio, involved in AMOS which is a group of us going out into the community and seeing what concerns they have and helping them solve the issue and of course I love spending time with my family!

Mary Gately (“Lynndy”)

Congratulations to Kimbery Velez in receiving the Past President's Professional Development Award 

Greetings Research and Scholarship Committee

Words cannot express how humbled and grateful I am to be the recipient of the Past President's Professional Development Award.  I am honored to be recognized for such a prestigious award and have the opportunity to continue my professional presentation nursing journey with hopes of publication.  I wish to express my gratitude to Omicron Delta for their support.

Have you ever been to a Sigma Convention and presented? If not, you are missing out on a great professional experience. Want to know more, come along and share my journey as I reflect on the experience. It started with the idea of mentorship to meet the needs of a new audience. Consider a different type of mentoring contract in which an accomplished nurse with unachieved goals connected with a mentor aligned with those successes. This is a great way to retain our nursing personnel and preserve valuable experience. This idea evolved into an abstract submission chosen for presentation at a Sigma Biennial stage. This was not your typical presentation, but a Pecha Kucha method with 20 slides each for 20 seconds. Did I mention no words on the slides? It was a challenge to deliver precise content within the time limit, but my colleague and I were successful and received many compliments.  

Sharing this knowledge was empowering, and my 'Why' for attending the Sigma Biennial. It is all about networking and scholarship on an international level. The connections made there can only enhance your professional nursing journey. I interacted with fellow Sigma members from Asia, the Caribbean, and Africa, all in a day, and we were able to share our nursing experiences. How often do you get to dialogue with nurses from Europe and compare similar challenges faced in the USA? Don't be afraid to share achievements on a national platform. I am following the call to action of "Respect" with my "Reflection".

Thank you again Omicron Delta for the award and support.   Kimberly Velez, MSN, RN 

 
Every two years at the Biennial Convention, Sigma presents a number of awards and inducts honorary members.

Those of you who participated in our Annual Membership Meeting got a chance to meet Katie and learn more about her publishing experience. We are pleased to announce that Katie and her colleagues are recipients of the:

Capstone International Nursing Book Award recognizes the excellence of an outstanding book published by nurses.  Sigma’s International Awards for Nursing Excellence are based on the society’s dedication to fostering high professional nursing standards, recognizing superior achievement, developing leadership, and encouraging creative work.

Veteran-centered Care in Education and Practice: An Essential Guide for Nursing Faculty
Brenda Elliott, Katie Chargualaf, and Barbara Patterson
Springer Publishing (USA)

Addresses the mandate to improve veteran healthcare as a national priority, highlighting the tremendous impact nurses can make on improving veteran health. It provides guidance on how faculty can integrate veteran-centered care into nursing curricula, ultimately improving veteran-centered care at the bedside and in the community.
The expert authors utilize a holistic approach to veteran needs, beginning with an overview of the importance of veteran health in nursing education and a primer of military culture and lifestyle, and transitions A wide range of veteran-specific healthcare issues are addressed, including occupational and environmental exposures, common physical-related issues, mental-health issues, and special topics such as women's health and military sexual trauma, gender issues, and end-of-life concerns.