Nurses garner DAISY distinctions, UMMC trainees collect MAS trophies

CICU, Children’s Hospital nurses’ selfless acts earn awards

Andrew McGinity, an inpatient nurse in the Cardiac Intensive Care Unit, and Brooke Barnes, an inpatient nurse on 5C in Children’s Hospital, have each received the DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses.

McGinity was nominated for the award by a patient’s family member who said McGinity simply “cared about us.”

“He helped keep our family member as comfortable as possible, while also finding time to share inspirational words of encouragement,” the nomination read. “I could never do the job Andrew does, but I am so thankful for him. Andrew demonstrated grace and compassion every day as he helped my family through the most difficult time of our lives.”

Barnes was nominated for taking extra time to care for a pediatric patient.

“Brooke . . . brought clothes and toys during a very scary time in a patient’s life,” the nomination read. “During one of her shifts, it was noticed that although Brooke clocked out, she still found time to play a while and rock this patient to sleep.

“Brooke made sure this patient felt loved.”

Established in 2000 by members of the family of former patient Patrick Barnes, the Diseases Attacking the Immune System (DAISY) Foundation presents the DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses to the “unsung heroes of our society who deserve far more recognition and honor than they receive” as a “thank you” to nurses across the country.

About 1,700 health care facilities in all 50 states and in 11 other countries honor their nurses with the DAISY Award.

The DAISY Committee at UMMC reviews nominations every two months and selects up to two winners each cycle who meet the criteria for going “over and beyond the expectations of a nurse.” For more information or to nominate a nurse for the DAISY Award, visit https://www.umc.edu/news/Miscellaneous/2017/March/images/daisy-nomination-form.pdf.

UMMC trainees earn distinctions at MAS annual meeting

Eight trainees were honored by the Mississippi Academy of Sciences for their manuscripts, posters or oral presentations conducted at the University of Mississippi Medical Center.

Those who received awards in the Health Sciences Division during the MAS annual meeting Feb. 21-22 at the University of Southern Mississippi included:

Oral/poster presentations: Post-baccalaureate students

Sarah Miller, second-year medical student, received first place for her project, “Can Anthropometric Measures of Obesity Predict Liver Nodularity in a Diverse NAFLD Population?”

Dr. Kristen Carter, Master of Science in clinical investigation student, received second place for her project, “Marijuana Exposure Is Associated with Hypercoagulability after Injury.”

Mohammad Hasan, Ph.D. student in microbiology and immunology, received third place for his project, “Dynamin Is Required for Efficient Cytomegalovirus Maturation and Envelopment.” Hasan also received second place in the manuscript competition.

 Oral/poster presentations: Undergraduate students

Rhenius Antonyraj, Millsaps College student, received first place for his project, “Fentanyl Abuse During Pregnancy, Deleterious Effects of Offspring Development.” Antonyraj worked with Dr. Donna Platt and Dr. Daniela Ruedi-Bettschen in the Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior.

Hezekiah Williams, Hinds Community College student, received third place for his project, “Liver Ischemia/reperfusion Injury and Inflammatory Responses in Obese Female Rats.” Williams worked with Dr. Frank Spradley and Dr. Chris Anderson in the Department of Surgery.

Murrah High School Base Pair Students

Jayden Smith received second place for his project, “Oxidative Stress and Its Involvement in Gestational Diabetes Associated with Preeclampsia.” Smith worked with Dr. Lir-Wan Fan and Dr. Norma Ojeda in the Department of Pediatrics.

Sellena Dixon received second place for her project, “Acute Kidney Injury During Pregnancy Decreases Offspring Size and Surface Righting Development.” Dixon worked with Dr. Kedra Wallace in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology.

Matthew Hairston, received third place for his project, “Inflammation Enhances Cognitive Deficits in Juvenile Rats with Intrauterine Growth Restriction.” Hairston worked with Fan and Ojeda.