One night, Dianne Haschmann, RN, from the Highland Surgery Center made a call to a surgeon in regard to a patient who had developed a number of post-operative issues. The man had been expecting to be discharged hours earlier. Haschmann herself was well past the normal end to her shift. But there she was, working with the patient to make sure that the issues with his catheter and with some bleeding were properly handled. Back to the phone to make another call to the surgeon. Sitting with the patient’s family to explain the situation. Another stop in on the patient to reassure him that, even though he had to be re-admitted, everything was going to be all right.
“She is technically adept, excellent in explaining and teaching and so compassionate with patients and families,” said colleague Deborah Page, RN. “She epitomizes the essence of a DAISY Award nurse.”
Fitting, because Haschmann was honored with the DAISY Award for nursing excellence, an award she accepted surrounded by nearly four dozen fellow nurses, managers and hospital officials, as well as her parents, husband and twin daughters. Haschmann was quick to acknowledge a guest who could not attend, her sister, who days earlier had surgery at Highland and was home recuperating with help from Haschmann.
“This is all very overwhelming,” Haschmann said. “I work with far better nurses than I, but to be nominated by my mentors and then considered worthy of this is profoundly special.”
The nomination forms describe Haschmann in the same words. “Humble.” “Can-do attitude.” “Compassionate.” “Empathetic.” “Advocate.”
“I do try to bring a positivity to work every day,” Haschmann said. “I feel that a good day is when I go to work and do the right thing the right way. I’m there for a reason and the patients that come across my path are there for a reason, and it’s my goal to help quell their fear and pain and get them through the experience and ready to go home well-cared for and safely.”
Haschmann has experience with putting individuals on the right path: She spent 10 of her first 12 years at Highland in the Labor and Delivery Unit. The move to HSC provided her with new challenges, such as “caring for male patients” and giving her a “different perspective on care” and a “broader team approach” in general. In trying to explain those latter notions, Haschmann kept looking for the right word before a colleague chimed in.
“A snapshot,” she said, and Haschmann immediately agreed.
“That’s it,” said Haschmann, a graduate of the University of Rochester Nursing School. “I get a better snapshot of the patient’s stay and the kind of care we provide.”
With Haschmann, each day and each patient offers a different snapshot, something she said makes her role in HSC so rewarding.
“It’s a challenge to find a way to make each patient comfortable,” she said. “Sometimes it’s a touch, other times it isn’t. Some days a smile works wonders and other days it might be something else. That keeps a nurse on her toes and challenges us to be better each day and find the right way that helps that patient.”