Recipients of the Professional Nursing Advancement Program (PNAP), the Margaret C. Tibbetts Award, and the Julia Altschule Award were presented during the 2021 Fall Nursing Conference, held on Friday, December 3.
Professional Nursing Advancement Program
Presented by PNAP co-chairs Nicole Visaggio, BSN, RN, and Ann Rapoport, MSN, RN, PCNS, PNAP recognition acknowledges clinical excellence and a commitment to maintaining a professional practice environment.
Recipients were presented in Tier 1 and Tier 2.
Tier 1:
- Stephanie Ruddock, RN – Schizophrenia and Bipolar Disorder Inpatient Program
- Erin Savage, RN – Schizophrenia and Bipolar Disorder Inpatient Program
- Kathryn Sutherland, RN – Dissociative Disorders and Trauma Inpatient Program
Tier 2:
- Roan Bautista, RN – ECT Service
Congratulations to this year’s nursing award winners!
Margaret C. Tibbetts Award
This year’s Margaret C. Tibbetts honor went to Heather Pietrantonio, RN, a clinical coordinator at the Short Term Unit North.
Heather Pietrantonio was nominated by Ann Rapoport, MSN, RN, PCNS, nurse director on the Short Term Unit, and Fernando Rodriguez-Villa, MD, medical director for Short Term Unit North.
In her nomination letter, Rapoport lauded Pietrantonio for her empathy, teamwork skills, and leadership. “I am very proud of Heather and all that she has accomplished,” Rapoport said. “She is a true nursing leader and one that is loyal to McLean and her nursing profession.”
Rodriquez-Villa echoed Rapoport’s remarks, citing Pietrantonio’s “warm, caring, supportive nature.” Pietrantonio, he asserted, “exemplifies the best in nursing leadership.”
The Margaret C. Tibbets Award is named after the longtime director of the nursing school and Department of Nursing at McLean. Presented annually, the award recognizes a nurse who exemplifies leadership in nursing, including advocacy in the advancement of nursing practice, teaching, and research.
Julia Altschule Award
The 2021 Julia Altschule Award was presented to Lily Louis, who works at the Older Adult Program.
Louis, a mental health specialist, was nominated for this honor by Gerilyn J. Cintolo, RN, nurse director for the Older Adult Program. Louis, she said, “has embodied the spirit of caring this award recognizes. She treats even the most challenging patients non-judgmentally and respectfully. She is quick to assist a patient with whatever they may need.”
Also, Cintolo stated, Louis “is never too busy to sit and talk with someone and makes them feel that, despite whatever is going on around her, they have her undivided attention.”
Each year, the Julia Altschule Award is presented to a mental health specialist or staff nurse who has worked at McLean for two years or longer and who exemplifies the highest level of humane care for patients.
The award was established in 1980 by Mark D. Altschule, MD, in memory of his wife. Mark Altschule was a consulting internist at McLean Hospital, as well as director of Internal Medicine and Research in Clinical Physiology at McLean from 1947 to 1967.
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