Methodist Hospital’s Jaci Schnakenberg honored with The DAISY Award

The DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses honors caregivers for their extraordinary skill and compassion. Over 5,400 organizations worldwide work with The DAISY Foundation to recognize deserving nurses. Learn more about The DAISY Award here.

Congratulations to Jaci Schnakenberg, BSN, RN, a registered nurse in Cardiovascular Surgery at Methodist Hospital, for being honored with The DAISY Award. Schnakenberg is also a Nebraska Methodist College graduate. Her nominator wrote:

“Our son, who is a young adult with special needs, was hospitalized for the first time ever in his adult life with a life-threatening illness. He is a nonverbal autistic individual and exhibits a great fear of doctors/medical settings. … Our son spent five days in the hospital, which was one of the worse experiences of his life. However, there was one special angel named Jaci (his nurse for three nights in a row) who went above and beyond in taking extra time learning how to communicate with our son. We explained to Jaci that he was terrified of a hospital setting, and while his expressive skills were low, his cognitive skills were a bit higher. This didn't seem to bother her, and we could tell by her actions toward our son that Jaci was genuine in her cares with our son. Even though our son had an IV line for drawing labs and administering medication, our son didn't quite understand the syringes filled with saline and medications were not going to hurt him. Jaci immediately sensed his fear and began playing with him showing him it was only water and no pokes; she even distracted him with her little finger magic tricks prior to touching the lines. This was HUGE in building a trusting relationship with our son and comforting him to the point that she made the day nurses’ jobs easier because she had worked out a routine with our son for taking vitals and drawing lab or giving medication through the IV. Jaci even instructed the nurses as to what works best in calming and working with our son. … Jaci, to date, is the first nurse/medical individual we have met that didn't allow our son's diagnosis to define him as a person. Jaci had the ability to treat him as an individual who deserved her best care and saw beyond his Autism diagnosis. … Jaci is more than deserving of The DAISY Award! She not only demonstrated compassion, empathy and respect toward our son but also never ceased from creating new ways to ease his fears. This is truly The Meaning of Care.”

Do you know a nurse who is deserving of The DAISY Award? Nominations can be submitted by patients, family members, colleagues or anyone who experiences or observes extraordinary compassionate care being provided by a nurse. To nominate a Methodist nurse for The DAISY Award, click here.