1st Quarter 2001 National and Division Heroes

National Heroes
RN Category: Carmen Gordon-Sunflower Division, Hackensack (HAC) Office, Hackensack, NJ
LPN Category: Hilda Ngangmuta-Sunflower Division, North Brunswick Pediatric (NBP) Office, North Brunswick, NJ
HHA Category: Mary Burns-Cattails Division, PCA West (PW) Office, Philadelphia, PA

Division Heroes

Division

Name / Category

 Office / City / State
Cattails Mary Burns, HHA* PCA West (PW) Office, Philadelphia, PA
Dogwoods Joan Church, RN
Sherri Winstead, LPN Haywood Brown, HHA		 Winston Skilled (WS) Office, Winston-Salem, NC· Charlotte (CHA) Office, Charlotte, NC· Winston-Salem (WIN) Office, Winston-Salem, NC
Edelweiss Phyllis Anders, RN
Lena Delzingaro, LPN
Tammy Hertzog, HHA		 Willow Grove Pediatrics (WGP) Office, Willow Grove, PA· Philadelphia Pediatrics (PHP) Office, Philadelphia, PA· Lancaster (LAN) Office, Lancaster, PA
Forget-Me-Nots Julia DePasion-Hower, RN
Colleen Andersen, HHA 		Tampa (TAM) Office, Tampa, FL· Pinellas Park (PP) Office, Pinellas Park, FL
Roses Janella Bacon, HHA Special Contracts (SC) Office, Philadelphia, PA
Snapdragons Elizabeth Ricciani, RN
Ginger Estelow, LPN
Darlene Randall, HHA		 Lawrenceville (LAW) Office, Lawrenceville, NJ· Burlington (BUR) Office, Burlington, NJ· Cherry Hill (CH) Office, Cherry Hill, NJ
Sunflowers Carmen Gordon, RN*
Hilda Ngangmuta, LPN*
Margarita Martin, HHA		 Hackensack (HAC) Office, Hackensack, NJ· North Brunswick Peds (NBP) Office, North Brunswick, NJ· Hudson County (HUD) Office, Union City, NJ
Tulips Peggy Thompson, RN
Linda Leonetti, LPN
Joyce Williams, HHA		 Delaware Pediatrics (DP) Office, New Castle, DE· Delaware Pediatrics (DP) Office, New Castle, DE· Wilmington (WIL) Office, Wilmington, DE

* denotesNational Hero of the Quarter


Carmen Gordon's dedication is illustrated by her extra efforts on a particularly challenging quadriplegic case. Many other nurses had refused to work on the case, but Gordon accepted it without hesitation. Focused solely on her patient's needs, Gordon uses her extensive technological expertise and her knowledge of the psychological issues related to quadriplegia to develop a long-term and almost spiritual relationship with this client. Even the client feels Gordon is an "angel sent by God." Gordon is also the consummate team player-communicating vital information to others on the care team. Known as a self-directed and caring professional, Gordon truly exemplifies many of the finest qualities of nursing.

Hilda Ngangmuta's dedication is illustrated by her heroic and self-sacrificing efforts on behalf of a patient who required total care. The patient-who is paralyzed, ventilator-dependent, and trached-came very close to being placed in a facility due to a staffing crisis. Hearing of the patient's plight, Ngangmuta stepped in to become the patient's primary caregiver-allowing the patient to remain at home. Her emotional support, availability, and excellent nursing skills all combined to truly provide heroic service to this patient. In the words of Nursing Supervisor Jane Feldman, "There are nurses who I think of as the 'foundation' nurses of a case. These are the nurses who can be relied on for their nursing, technical, and personal skills. Hilda is one of these nurses and more." Office Director Donna Rinsler echoes these sentiments: "Hilda is what one thinks of when you say hero nurse."

Mary Burns's dedication is illustrated by her reliability, loyalty, respectful demeanor, and tireless support of her clients. In 2000, Burns had perfect attendance-a feat she repeated in 1996. From 1997 to 1999, she only missed 3.5 days of work. In 1995, she was absent only one day-and that was due to bad weather. This dependability means her clients know they can count on her. Burns is also known for her respectful and caring service and support of her clients. According to Staff Supervisor Marie Brown, "Each and every day, [Mary] provides a small miracle by being present with her clients." Burns's office recently received a referral based on Mary's solid and positive reputation as a Bayada Nurses caregiver.