Nurses from UCLA recognized by Simms/Mann Family Foundation with a fresh honor.
Simms/Mann Family Foundation Honours Exceptional Nurses
The Simms/Mann Family Foundation's "Off the Chart: Rewarding Nursing Greatness" programme has recognised 30 nurses for their exceptional leadership, creativity, and expertise in patient care. The programme, which honours nurses who demonstrate a bias towards action, originality, courage, and potential for impact, distributed financial awards to selected nurses.
Among the honourees is Kelly Hopkins, a neonatal ICU nurse who has made significant improvements in the process of using fluidized positioning devices to help ventilate premature babies. Iris Mayoral, another recipient, maintains a laser focus on improving clinical care for the geriatric and medically complex inpatient psychiatric population she serves.
Iris Mayoral has completed the Frontline Leadership Project, served as Chair of the RNPH New Knowledge, Innovation, and Research Council, and recently completed the UCLA Nursing Informatics Fellowship. She has also been instrumental in elevating the nursing profession's visibility and morale through her work.
David Yamada, a clinical nurse and Union Representative, dedicates great effort and hundreds of hours of his personal time to the role, striving to establish a supportive work environment that prioritizes the well-being and safety of nurses.
Kayla Kafka, a brachytherapy nursing supervisor, collaborated with the American Brachytherapy Society to develop their first nursing continuing education course and curriculum. In 2022, she presented her project "Radiation Therapy and Implanted Cardiac Devices: Education for Radiation Therapists and Nurses" at the European Society for Radiotherapy and Oncology (ESTRO).
Valentina Obreja is an innovator transforming Extra Corporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) from a desperate last resort into a promising chance of survival. Mithun Mahinda developed the New Knowledge and Innovation collaborative, a unified approach to replace the three previously siloed councils, improving clinician workflows by implementing innovative technologies and informatics solutions.
Christopher Lee is a clinical nurse on the Medical-Surgical Unit. He exhibits a remarkable level of wisdom and insight into the needs of the nursing profession and effectively channels this intuition to drive his own self-directed growth. Christopher Lee also volunteered to become a COVID safety champion and worked to ensure readiness in COVID care.
Amy Castillo, another honouree, is a clinical nurse who designed The Gray Dot, a symbol to alert staff of high-risk situations and improve workplace safety. Lindsay Brant, one of the honourees, is a critical care nurse with a holistic approach to medicine and a focus on end-of-life care.
The gifts aim to build morale among nurses, who have been worn down by the pandemic and its aftereffects, and to demonstrate the profound respect nurses have earned. The Simms/Mann Family Foundation has a long history of philanthropy in support of clinical care at UCLA, including the Simms/Mann Center for Integrative Oncology and a $18-million commitment to ensure supportive services remain free to patients.
The impact of the programme includes recognition of nurse leadership and ingenuity within healthcare settings, encouragement of continuous professional development and innovation, support for community engagement such as volunteering at food banks, shelters, and charity events, and elevating the nursing profession's visibility and morale through celebratory events and public acknowledgment.
Kelley Hopkins' work in radiation oncology, specifically her improvements in the use of fluidized positioning devices for premature babies, demonstrates her expertise in patient care within the healthcare industry. Iris Mayoral, a geriatric and medically complex inpatient psychiatric nurse, has made significant strides in science and health-and-wellness through her efforts in leadership and research.
