Baptist Union County Recognizes Nurse for Outstanding Care

NEW ALBANY, Miss., September 30, 2024 – Judy Murphy, RN, at Baptist Memorial Hospital-Union County, recently received the DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses, an award given in appreciation of the work nurses do. Murphy, a nurse in the ICU/Stepdown unit, was nominated by a patient’s family member.

Nurses like Murphy are nominated by patients, families, and colleagues for the DAISY Award, and from those nominations, nursing leadership at Baptist Union County selects nurses to receive the award.
At a presentation in front of nurses, colleagues, and family, Murphy received a certificate and a sculpture. The sculpture, titled “A Healer’s Touch,” is hand-carved by artists of the Shona Tribe in Africa.

In the nomination, the family member shared about their father’s cancer and sickness that required a hospital admission, which was emotional and stressful for the family. The family member stated, “Judy hugged and comforted me when I needed it the most. She showed such kindness and compassion. God knew I needed her to be my father’s nurse that day.”

“It is truly an honor to recognize Judy for her dedication to our patients,” said Heather Reid, Chief Nursing Officer, at Baptist Union County. “She embodies the Baptist focus of empathy and compassion for each patient.”

The not-for-profit DAISY Foundation, based in Glen Ellen, Calif., was established by family members in memory of J. Patrick Barnes. Barnes died at age 33 in late 1999 from complications of idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura, an auto-immune disease.

The extraordinary care Barnes and his family received from nurses while he was ill led to the creation of the DAISY Award.

Baptist Union County offers a variety of services, including adult and pediatric inpatient care, sleep lab, maternity, surgery, robotic surgery, a 24-hour emergency department and diagnostics. The hospital also has positron emission tomography and computed tomography scans, 3D mammography, TeleHealth services and an eICU. Baptist Union County has an excellent reputation for providing quality care and recently earned an “A” Safety Grade from the Leapfrog Group and Outstanding Patient Experience Award from Healthgrades. Baptist Union County earned five stars from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services for the hospital’s quality, outcomes, safety and patient satisfaction. For more information, visit www.baptistonline.org/locations/union-county.