Tracy Whinery, BSN, RN, received the DAISY Award for outstanding patient care at UT Health Quitman last week.  

Whinery, a wound care nurse, received the nomination from a patient who also works as a nurse at the hospital. 

Jennifer Kennimer, RN, who works in the emergency department, said in the nomination that she was worried about a cancer diagnosis in October when she had a large tumor removed from her arm, which left a sizable hole. The tumor was benign, but she still faced a long road to recovery as her wound healed.

She said Whinery accepted the challenge of healing the wound, dressing it several times a week, applying a wound vacuum to help speed healing and providing instruction on nutrition, vitamins and supplements to help her body heal. What was most meaningful, Kennimer said, was that Whinery also provided her personal cell phone, saying to call at any time if she needed anything or had a question. 

“Some days I would be OK with all of it emotionally, other days I just cried and cried. On those days, Tracy took special care of not just my wound, but also me as another human being who was suffering both physically and emotionally,” Kennimer said. 

“Tracy has such a calming spirit and an empathetic soul that by the time my dressing was finished, she would give me a hug, wipe my tears away and say, ‘Call me any time.’ I always left feeling hopeful and uplifted and in peace,” Kennimer added. 

She said her large wound had completely healed in three months, and she feels the outcome would have been different if Whinery wasn’t her nurse. 

“Tracy is an angel in disguise,” she said. “Tracy not only helped heal my wound, but she also helped heal a tiny broken piece of my soul.”

As a winner of the DAISY Award, Whinery received a certificate, a DAISY Award pin and a sculpture called A Healer’s Touch, hand-carved by artists of the Shona Tribe in Zimbabwe. Awards are presented throughout the year at celebrations attended by the honoree’s colleagues, patients and visitors.

The DAISY Foundation is a not-for-profit organization established in memory of J. Patrick Barnes, who died in 1999 at age 33 from complications of an autoimmune disease (DAISY is an acronym for Diseases Attacking the Immune System.)

The care Barnes and his family received from nurses while he was ill inspired this unique means of thanking nurses for making a profound difference in the lives of their patients and patient families. Today, this program has been implemented in more the 1,900 healthcare facilities, including UT Health East Texas.