Thursday, May 8, 2008

Denton Regional Medical Center Nurse Toni Haddox named to DFW “Great 100 Nurses”

By Pegasus News wire

Toni Haddox, BS, RNC, MBA

DENTON — The Administrative Director for Women’s Services at Denton Regional Medical Center, Toni Haddox, BS, RNC, MBA, has been named to the coveted Texas Nurses Association (Districts Three and Four) and the Dallas/Fort Worth Hospital Council’s "Great 100 Nurses" for 2008.

This honor is accorded to only 100 nurses in the Dallas/Fort Worth area each year. The winners are chosen by their peers and patients, and are selected because they most exemplify excellence in the art and science of nursing.

For years, Haddox advocated for the establishment of a Bilirubin Clinic at Denton Regional, recognizing that many indigent newborns in Denton County were unable to be seen in a pediatrician’s office or other clinics 2 weeks following delivery for screening. Sometimes these delays led to unsafe hyperbilirubinaemia, which if left untreated leads to Kernicterus and irreversible brain damage.

In 2007, Haddox was instrumental in establishing The BiliClinic which provides a place to conduct this screening 24-48 hours post discharge. She also wrote and was awarded a grant to ensure care for families in Denton County who are unable to pay for this service.

In addition, she has provided superior leadership on other important initiatives at Denton Regional, including restraint reduction and achieving the “Nurse Friendly Designation”.

“It's always amazing to be in the delivery room when a new life comes into the world," said Haddox. "However, there is one particular delivery that will always stand out for me, the delivery of a newborn to a young woman who thought she would never be able to have children of her own because she had had a heart transplant several years before and it was just too risky.

"The moment that little life entered this world it felt like the earth stopped spinning for one brief second. I cried tears of joy with that patient as much as her family did and almost as much as when my own children were born.”

The “Great 100 Nurses” award is unique in that honorees do not have to belong to a particular professional organization or practice in a particular clinical specialty. Criteria for nomination includes leadership, service, acting as a role model, compassion and significant contributions to the community and the profession. In addition, all proceeds from the event will provide funds for scholarship for area nursing students.

The awards will be presented at a ceremony at the Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center on May 12, 2008. This recognition reminds us of the incredible contributions made by nurses each and every day.

Previous Denton Regional Medical Center recipients of the “Great 100 Nurses” award include: John Shaw, Susan Conn, Cindy Bowles, Diane Ellis, Lera Mace, Dawn Kregel, Janice Meroney, Barbara Moody, and Jayne Thomas.

Source: Denton Regional Medical Center

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