SVHC Announces DAISY Award Winner

BENNINGTON, VT—October 20, 2021—Seline Skoug, RN, of the Emergency Department, was the September recipient of the DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses at Southwestern Vermont Health Care (SVHC).

Skoug was nominated by a fellow nurse colleague from the Women’s and Children’s Department for her role in making a patient more comfortable.

The nomination read, “A patient arrived to the Emergency Department (ED) reporting abdominal pain, not aware that she was pregnant and in labor. The patient was afraid, overwhelmed, and alone with no support person available. Seline met the patient in the ED and accompanied her to Women’s and Children’s, while creating a bond with the patient. The connection between the patient and Seline was apparent, as they held hands and Seline provided labor support, breathing with the patient as she contracted. The nurse stayed by her side throughout her entire labor and delivery, while her ED colleagues worked together to cover her assignment. Seline returned when her shift was over to check on the patient with flowers in hand.”

“It was magical,” Skoug said. “She asked me to stay with her, so I had to be there. I’m grateful to the ED team who covered me, so I could stay with the patient. I made sure the flowers I brought up the next day came with a note from all of us in the ED. The Women’s and Children’s nurse by our side was amazing to work with, as we embraced this patient during a challenging time in her life.” 

Skoug has been a licensed practical nurse at Southwestern Vermont Medical Center (SVMC) since 2010 and a EMT/AEMT with Arlington Rescue Squad since 2005. She has worked in the family practice, pediatrics, ExpressCare, and the ED settings. When she received her associate’s in nursing from Vermont Tech in 2020, she continued in the Emergency Department as an RN. In addition, Seline earned a master’s in healthcare administration from Simmons College in Boston. She sits on the SVMC Nursing Advisory Committee, the ED Nursing Advisory Committee, and the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee. 

“Seline is a special nurse,” said Pam Duchene, PhD, APRN, vice president of Patient Care Services and chief nursing officer at Southwestern Vermont Medical Center (SVMC). “When provided the opportunity, she overcame any uncertainty of her own and eagerly stepped into the family role for a patient in need. That’s remarkable.”  

The DAISY Award is part of a national merit-based recognition program established by the DAISY Foundation. It celebrates nurses’ education, training, and skill. Nominations can be submitted by patients, families, physicians, and colleagues. All nominations are blinded, so that they are anonymous before being reviewed by a selection committee. One nurse is then chosen as the DAISY Award winner. DAISY Awards are presented on a regular basis, usually bi-monthly or quarterly.

About SVHC:
Southwestern Vermont Health Care (SVHC) is a comprehensive, preeminent, health care system providing exceptional, convenient, and affordable care to the communities of Bennington and Windham Counties of Vermont, eastern Rensselaer and Washington Counties of New York, and northern Berkshire County in Massachusetts. SVHC includes Southwestern Vermont Medical Center (SVMC), Southwestern Vermont Regional Cancer Center, the Centers for Living and Rehabilitation, and the SVHC Foundation. SVMC includes 25 primary and specialty care practices.

Southwestern Vermont Health Care is among the most lauded small rural health systems in the nation. It is the recipient of the American Hospital Association’s 2020 Rural Hospital Leadership Award. SVMC ranked fourth nationwide for the value of care it provides by the Lown Institute Hospital Index and is a five-time recipient of the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Magnet® recognition for nursing excellence. It has also received the highest marks possible from the Leapfrog Group. 

Southwestern Vermont Medical Center provides exceptional care without discriminating on the basis of an individual’s age, race, ethnicity, religion, culture, language, physical or mental disability, socioeconomic status, sex, sexual orientation, or gender identity or expression. Language assistance services, free of charge, are available at 1-800-367-9559.