Lutheran General nurse among 2018 Advocate Nurse Award Winners
Always the first to try something new and a compassionate leader with a desire to create a safe workplace for all associates, this registered nurse goes above and beyond in making the emergency department at Advocate Lutheran General Hospital an amazing place to work. Because he embodies Advocate Health Care's core nursing values, Bernard Andres was recognized with the 2018 'Advocate Nurse Award' at Lutheran General Hospital.
Andres is among 15 award-winning nurses to be recognized by Advocate's executive leaders in a system-wide celebration at the health system's Downers Grove headquarters.
"Our 11,000 Advocate nurses work on the front line, serving patients and families at our hospitals, clinics, in the community and in the home," said Susan Campbell, senior vice president and chief nursing officer, Advocate Health Care. "These particular nurses were chosen by their colleagues to be recognized for their unwavering commitment to delivering safe, quality care in a way that is both compassionate and innovative."
Andres, a Northbrook resident, has worked at ALGH for 10 years. His commitment to creating a safe workplace shines through in his role as a safety high reliability coach and leader of the high performing safety team in the ED. Andres goes above and beyond the call of duty, always assisting patients and associates in any way he can. He's quick to take on the challenge of leading new initiatives and does so in a respectful and inspiring manner.
"Bernie is an exceptional nurse. He is the most dedicated nurse to patient safety that I have ever met," said Roseanne Niese, Director of Emergency and Critical Care Services at Advocate Lutheran General Hospital. "His peers, physicians, and other associates love working with him."
More than 400 nurses from Advocate Health Care's hospitals, home health care, support center, clinics and medical offices were nominated for this second annual award. Nominations were submitted by physicians and associates, including many non-nursing associates, to recognize Advocate nurses who empower, serve and thrive. These nominations were vetted and presented in blinded format to site-based review committees who scored each according to a metric that took into account each nominee's passion for patient care, commitment to service, problem-solving abilities and leadership aptitude.
The winners are nurses from a variety of specialties across the patient care continuum who represent diversity in their backgrounds and experiences; some are veteran nurses with more than 30 years of experience while others are relatively new to Advocate or to the nursing profession yet have already made an impact on their patients and colleagues.
Advocate Health Care is the largest employer of nurses in the state of Illinois, employing nearly 11,000 professional nurses across the system's 12 acute care facilities, more than 250 outpatient locations, home health, hospice, occupational health and corporate services. Nurses represent one-third of Advocate's workforce. For more information, visit www.theadvocatenurse.com.