June DAISY Award Winner

An employee at Thompson Cancer Network was honored with The DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses this week. The award is part of the DAISY Foundation’s program to recognize the super-human efforts nurses perform every day. The DAISY Award was established in 1999 by the family of a patient who had received extraordinary care and compassion from his nurses during his final days. Last week, The DAISY Award was presented to Darrel Hull, MSN, FNP-BC.

Darrel Hull is a nurse practitioner in our oncology department, nominated for his extraordinary compassion, care, and thoughtfulness.

Darrel was caring for an elderly male  at our TOG – Lenoir City office. One day, he struck up a conversation and the patient revealed that his wife had passed away several years ago. He said he missed her  delicious home-cooked meals – especially her homemade pot roast.  Darrel was really touched by this story, and he made a mental  note of the patient’s next appointment . The night before the patient returned to the office, Darrel prepared a homemade pot roast with vegetables. When the patient arrived, Darrel told him he had a special surprise and brought in the homemade meal, still warm from the oven. The patient returned home and called the office later in the day to say he couldn’t wait until dinner to eat it – he had already enjoyed some for lunch. He was so touched by Darrel’s thoughtful gesture and said it reminded him that the staff at Thompson really care about him.

The DAISY Committee presented Darrel with a pin, a certificate, daisies, The Healer’s Touch sculpture, and cinnamon rolls for the entire department to share. Congratulations, Darrel!  You make us so proud, and we appreciate your commitment to always putting your patients first.