Tenacious Caregiver AwardS
There are three nomination categories: NFP Nurse, Nurse Supervisor and Administrator and the NSO chooses the top performing site. The Tenacious Caregiver Awards recognize professionals who have displayed outstanding commitment to delivering the Nurse-Family Partnership model with fidelity, achieved outstanding performance and outcomes for families, and served their clients and community with heart and tenacity.
2022 Tenacious Caregivers Winners
Network Partner: McLeod Health in SC
With seven hospitals, McLeod Health is composed of approximately 15,000 staff and more than 90 physician practices throughout its 18-county service area. The system currently has 988 licensed beds, including Hospice and Behavioral Health. The McLeod Health team has been implementing Nurse-Family Partnership in SC since 2014. They have been a consistent and high-achieving partner to the National Service Office – maintaining high operating performance, fidelity to the model and delivering life-changing outcomes to SC families. The team at McLeod Health has been willing to go above and beyond to advance the goals and mission of Nurse-Family Partnership.
Administrator: Lisa Ritchey, BSN, RN, Director of Nurse-Family Partnership at UPMC Home Healthcare of Central PA
Ritchey has dedicated more than 20 years of service to Nurse-Family Partnership during her 40-year nursing career. Ritchey has been a steadfast advocate for NFP in her community and beyond – from using her voice to push for new funding streams, to leading her team’s participation in several pilots with the National Service Office (NSO) to innovate and improve the collective impact. She is dedicated to empowering first-time families to succeed and has presented NFP to various human service providers across the region.
Nurse Supervisor: Lynn Lauri, BSN, RN, from Maternal & Family Health Services in PA
Lynn’s 40-year nursing career includes 20 years at Nurse-Family Partnership, where she has served as Nurse Supervisor for two years. Lauri’s personal goal is to change the future, one baby at a time. Lauri has proudly served 270 NFP families over the years. Even when her team doubled in size last year, Lauri never faltered in her support of her team’s professional development, self-care and reflective practice.
NFP Nurse: Maria Otero, RN, of Brooklyn Nurse-Family Partnership at SCO Family of Services in NY
Otero has dedicated 14 years of service to Nurse-Family Partnership. Her consistent performance – from her strong caseload to her retention of clients – shows her passion and dedication for bringing excellence to the nursing profession. It’s clear that Otero embodies NFP’s values. Most importantly, she is a steadfast advocate for her clients, who often feel unheard or ignored by the healthcare system.
2021 Tenacious Caregivers Winners
Network Partner: Northeastern North Carolina NFP at Halifax Community College
The Halifax team has been a leader in the field, maintaining fidelity to the model and achieving exceptional outcomes for the families they serve. Their nurses have worked hard to increase their caseloads. Even in the face of the challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, they are operating well above full capacity. The Halifax team has been also extremely innovative and creative, especially during the pandemic, to keep clients engaged. They have conducted virtual pop-up events for their referral partners, and have maintained a very engaged community advisory board, who conducted a diaper drive for clients during the pandemic.
Administrator: Robin Bailey Callahan – Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians
This award speaks to the incredible work that Robin has done leading the agency at the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, supporting her nurses and supervisor on the team, and going above and beyond to provide extra support and resources to families. She has built strong connections in the community to grow support for NFP. This is especially evident in the strength of their community advisory board and the strong relationships she has built with the tribal council.
Nurse Supervisor: Stephannie Cooper Senegal – Wake County NFP
Stephannie received an impressive five nominations for this year’s award – which speaks to the hard-working, caring and compassionate supervisor that she is. We were impressed by the stories we heard of Stephannie supporting the needs and wellbeing of her team, especially in light of the challenges of the pandemic. She demonstrates what it means to be a strong leader, which is evident in the impressive outcomes that her team has consistently achieved.
NFP Nurse: Julie Ackerman – Boulder County NFP
Julie has been an NFP Nurse for seven years. She has completed nearly 4,000 visits and has supported 53 moms in graduating from NFP. Julie has supported her clients to find their own solutions and be empowered to make lasting change in their lives. Julie truly exemplifies what it means to be an NFP nurse!
2019 Tenacious Caregiver Winners
The four awards were presented at the 2019 National Symposium in Nashville, Tennessee in September, 2019. We had an amazing group of nominees in each category. The winners are:
Network Partner: Care Ring NFP – Mecklenburg County, North Carolina
Administrator: Patricia Yoder – NFP of Chester County, Pennsylvania
Nurse Supervisor: Manoucheka Chery – NFP Broward Regional Health Planning Council, Florida
NFP Nurse: Keisha Lucas – NFP of Forsyth County, North Carolina
2018 tenacious caregiver award RECIPIENT
We received inspiring and compelling stories and were honored to present the inaugural award to Cheryl Spicer, NFP Nurse at Sadler Health Center Nurse-Family Partnership in Carlisle, PA.
Cheryl not only consistently carries a full caseload and has been a nurse home visitor for eleven years, but she hosted numerous nursing students for one-day shadowing experiences and even mentored one of them for 120 hours. She has completed over 4,000 home visits, over 5,000 hours of face to face time with
Nurse-Family Partnership moms and 26,000 lonely miles driving to and from home visits. She is compassionate and empowering, and epitomizes the Nurse-Family Partnership mission in more ways that we can articulate. Congratulations and THANK YOU for all you do for our families!