Fox Chase ICU Nurse Chosen as Finalist in the Giving Excellence Meaning (GEM) Award
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Kaitlyn Gregory, DNP, RN, a staff RN and interim clinical nurse specialist in the ICU at Fox Chase Cancer Center, has been selected as a finalist in the Clinical Nursing category in the Nurse.com-sponsored Giving Excellence Meaning (GEM) Awards.
Kaitlyn Gregory, DNP, RN Gregory is one of 30 nurses in the Mid-Atlantic region who were honored on Sept. 23, 2016.
“Kaitlyn’s poise and ability to passionately articulate her professional pursuits and inspire others has made a significant impact on inpatient care and staff development at Fox Chase,” said Anne Jadwin, MSN, RN, AOCN, NE-BC, vice president of nursing and chief nursing officer at Fox Chase.
The GEM Award program publicly recognizes and celebrates excellence in nursing. Each year, the program conducts an online coast-to-coast search for nurses of excellence. Those identified by their nursing colleagues are nominated as finalists for this special honor.
Nursing experts evaluate and score all nominations in five categories: Excellence in Clinical Nursing, Excellence in Community Care, Excellence in Education & Mentorship, Excellence in Management, and Excellence in Executive Leadership. Regional winners are then invited to participate in the 2016 GEM Awards.
“I feel honored to be a finalist among other excellent members in the nursing community,” said Gregory. “I’m very excited about this nomination and the opportunity to represent Fox Chase Cancer Center at this event.”
As a registered nurse in the medical surgical ICU at Fox Chase, Gregory cares for critically ill oncology patients. In her department, she has led many initiatives including a delirium prevention group that established an assessment tool for identifying patients at risk for delirium and culminated in July 2016 with a presentation in Singapore at the Worldwide Nursing Conference where she was awarded Best Research Paper.
Gregory has also implemented the use of an emergency central line cart in the ICU and audited this process as a means of enhancing patient care safety in emergency situations. Serving as a Language of Caring champion, Gregory promoted service excellence skill development with her colleagues by modeling customer service skills and identifying ways to improve patients’ experiences.
In her expanded role as a clinical nurse specialist, Gregory mentored nurse residents in the development of evidence-based practice projects and poster presentations and recruited eight RN teams to participate in a Clinical Nurse Scholars’ Program. In addition, she is a member of the Magnet Steering Committee and is serving as a chapter lead in the Center’s fifth Magnet redesignation document preparation.
“We feel honored that the admiration and gratitude we have for working with a nurse of Kaitlyn’s intellect, compassion, and dedication will be highlighted at the GEM Awards,” said Jadwin, who nominated Kaitlyn for the prestigious award. “Her achievements are remarkable at the staff RN level and reflect her clinical leadership and ability to positively influence care.”