Aaron Caskey, RN, works in the 1 West unit at Vanderbilt Wilson County Hospital. He is one of the latest Vanderbilt Health DAISY Award winners.
From the nomination
“One of the patients on the unit was dying of cancer. The patient’s final wish was to see her daughter get married. The wedding was scheduled for April, however, due to rapid decline, the daughter decided to get married that night so her mother could be present. Due to extenuating circumstances, the hospital chaplain was not able to officiate the wedding. When Aaron found out there was no one to officiate the wedding, he immediately went online and became an ordained minister so he could perform the ceremony. The daughter was married at the mother’s bedside with Aaron as the officiant. It was a beautiful act to witness. This patient died two hours later, still holding the bouquet of flowers from the wedding. Due to Aaron, the patient’s final wishes were honored, watching her daughter get married; these are memories that will be everlasting.”
About DAISY Awards
The DAISY Award is a recognition for extraordinary nurses who exemplify compassion toward patients and families.
Vanderbilt Health distributes the award in partnership with The DAISY Foundation, which was formed in 1999 to honor the memory of J. Patrick Barnes, a 33-year-old man who died of complications of the autoimmune disease Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura (ITP). Barnes’ family was moved by the care they received from his nurses and wanted to recognize them to preserve his memory. DAISY is an acronym for Diseases Attacking the Immune System.
Vanderbilt Health nurse committees determine the individual recipients. Previous recipients of the DAISY Award are here.
The award is open to all licensed nurses, and anyone can nominate — including co-workers, patients and their families.
