Nurse Ellen Giles was recently honored with the DAISY AWARD for her compassionate work as an Intensive Care Unit nurse at WhidbeyHealth Medical Center.

An Oak Harbor resident, Giles was among a pool of candidates nominated by patients and colleagues for the award, which is given biannually to nurses. An interdisciplinary, interdepartmental committee selected her as the winner.

Clinical Manager Patsy Kolesar was particularly impressed with Giles handling of a hospice patient, who needed round-the-clock care in the intensive care unit during her last days. In her nomination of Giles, Kolesar noted her exceptional use of nursing skills to assist the patient and her family, according to a recent news release.

“On the day Ellen cared for her, I witnessed again the extraordinary person that Ellen is,” wrote Kolesar. “She worked diligently to provide this lady with peace and the ability to rest at the end of a long journey. I have seen her affect many lives in this way with the graceful touch of her hands, the warmth of her voice and the loving patience of a truly remarkable nurse.”

The DAISY Award is an international recognition program created by the J. Patrick Barnes family in 1999 to honor the “super-human” work nurses do for patients and families every day, the release said. It honors the memory of their son, who succumbed to an auto-immune disease at age 33, and the care he received by nurses during his illness.

Amy Vetter, the Regional Program Director for the DAISY Foundation, traveled to Whidbey Island to recognize Giles work at WhidbeyHealth Medical Center.