UPMC Muncy nurse honored with DAISY award

Muncy, Pa. — A nurse in the Emergency Department at UPMC Muncy was recently presented with a DAISY award.

Ethan Lazorka, BSN, was nominated by a patient who shared:

“I broke my wrist after a bad fall playing pickleball. I drove myself to the emergency department not knowing if it was broken or not. Ethan immediately came to my aid, assisting me with x-rays, and eventually administered a splint. I was in a panic as I have never broken a bone before. Ethan allowed me to squeeze his hand as the physician’s assistant replaced the bone. I felt no pain because I knew I was in good hands. However, my anxiety caused my blood pressure to increase. Ethan was able to calm me down to relax more and he made sure my blood pressure went down before discharge.”

The DAISY Foundation was established in 1999 in California by the family of J. Patrick Barnes, who died at the age of 33 from complications of an auto-immune disease.

During his eight-week hospital stay, his family was impressed by the care and compassion his nurses provided, not only to him but to everyone in the family. They created the DAISY Award in his memory to recognize those nurses who make a big difference in the lives of so many people.

UPMC is proud to be a DAISY Award partner. Nurses are nominated by patients, family members of patients, as well as other healthcare professionals. DAISY Awards are presented to nurses at UPMC in North Central Pa. monthly.

Each DAISY Award Honoree is given a DAISY Award pin, a certificate of honor, and a stone sculpture entitled, A Healer’s Touch, handcrafted by a tribe in Zimbabwe.

Anyone can nominate a nurse for the award including co-workers, patients, patient family members, or physicians. To nominate a nurse, visit UPMC.com/ThankaNurse .