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"The go-to person when it comes to everything from big emergencies to small nuances." 

The Nursing Professional Governance Organization (NPGO) honors up to two UVA Health University Medical Center nurses each month with a DAISY Award, and recently, NPGO honored a nurse whose "actions, advocacy, and experience resulted in quick intervention and a good patient outcome in a true emergent situation."

UVA Health University Medical Center Associate Chief Nursing Officer Rachel Nauman, DNP, RN, NEA-BC, and DAISY Award Committee Chair Caitlin Lowman, BSN, RN, CCRN, surprised Jessica Munnikhuysen, MSN, RN, CV-BC, AGACNP-BC, with her award.

Allison Vestal, BSN, RN, CEN, nominated Munnikhuysen:

"Since I started working in Electrophysiology three and a half years ago, one of the things I quickly noticed is how valuable Jessica is to the Electrophysiology Lab. She is the go-to person when it comes to everything from big emergencies to small nuances in charting or equipment. There is no answer she won't find! She's just one of those 'make it happen' kind of people.

"I know that any day I work with Jessica, or if it's a week that she is charge nurse, our patients and our department are in good hands. One thing I have always admired about Jessica is her advocacy for patients and team members. She stands up for what is in the best interest of the patient, first and foremost, and when she is a charge nurse, she also stands up for the team members and what is reasonable.

"Recently, we had a situation arise in the department during which Jessica's actions, advocacy, and experience resulted in quick intervention and a good patient outcome in a true emergent situation. We were performing a routine ablation procedure on a patient under conscious sedation, and suddenly the patient began to become extremely hypotensive.

"Jessica — the charge nurse that day — quickly came to the room and aligned appropriate interventions. We as a department are prepared for what to do in the event of an effusion and it is a scenario we typically quickly remedy, but this time was different and Jessica recognized that immediately. She mentioned to me something was telling her this was going to need further intervention than what we could handle among ourselves.

"She quickly reached out to Anesthesia, and we got a team in the room to take over managing the patient's airway and hemodynamics. Jessica was there to suggest the appropriate escalations. She asked the providers if they would like to initiate an 'open chest emergency.'

"She explained what all that entailed and they agreed and she promptly initiated it. She also coordinated with the blood bank and made sure we had blood in the room ready to infuse. The open chest emergency was called, and all the necessary personnel arrived in the lab.

"Jessica's prompt recognition, intervention, and escalation very possibly saved this patient's life. This is just one specific scenario that highlights Jessica's extraordinary contributions to the Electrophysiology Department!"

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"DAISY" stands for "Diseases Attacking the Immune System." The DAISY Award was established by The DAISY Foundation in memory of J. Patrick Barnes, who died at the age of only 33 of an autoimmune disease. The Barnes Family was awestruck by the clinical skills, caring, and compassion of his nurses — so they created this national award to thank nurses everywhere.

At UVA Health University Medical Center — patients or their families, visitors, and team members may submit a DAISY Award nomination.