Wednesday, December 4th, 2013

AONN+ Announces 2013 ONE Award Winner Libby Daniels

CONTACT: Trisha Sullivan, Executive Director, Academy of Oncology Nurse & Patient Navigators, Inc.®
Phone: 914-643-1726; E-mail: tsullivan@the-lynx-group.com

For Immediate Release:
The Academy of Oncology Nurse & Patient Navigators (AONN+) recognized the Third Annual Oncology Nursing Excellence™ (ONE) Award winner, Libby Daniels, RN, OCN, from Lexington Medical Center. ONE award nominees are recommended by their peers for their display of their leadership and compassion and for their commitment to evidence-based practices. There were 4 finalists; the final vote of 2350 determined the final winner.

The award was presented in front of an audience of 650 navigators at the General Session on November 15, 2013―the first day of the Fourth Annual AONN Conference―at The Peabody Hotel, in Memphis, Tennessee. In addition to Libby Daniels, there were 3 other finalists, including Susan Scherer, RN, BSN, OCN, RN Cancer Guides from Tampa, Florida; Elizabeth Hatcher, RN, BSN, George Washington University Cancer Institute, Washington, DC; and Anna Cathy Williams, RN, BSN, PHN, from the City of Hope in Duarte, California.

In a very personal way, Libby Daniels made a lasting impression on the colleague who nominated her. “Libby’s exceptional knowledge and patient skills became even more evident to me when the oncology experience became personal after my grandfather was diagnosed with stage IV lung cancer,” the colleague shares. “Libby heard about my grandfather’s diagnosis, and even though he was not one of her patients, she immediately offered her assistance.… Libby has been there for my whole family around the clock offering information, guidance, or just a listening ear—clearly illustrating that being an oncology nurse navigator is a way of life to her and not just a job. Some might say that oncology nursing is her ‘calling,’ and I would certainly agree.”

Libby has been a nurse for almost 29 years. She actually began her career in healthcare as a pharmacy technician. There was a nursing shortage at the time, and she was still deciding what she really wanted to do with her life. She worked at the local drugstore, and the pharmacist was growing old and getting sick. Libby would take care of him during and after her shifts. When she realized how much she enjoyed caring for her first “patient,” she decided to go into nursing. She enrolled in nursing school, and as she says, “It was just the right fit.”

Today, Libby is a general cancer nurse navigator, and she helps patients who are newly diagnosed with cancer on their journey through the treatment process by acting as their advocate, helping them to set up appointments, coordinating their care, and generally acting as their “go-to” person. She develops friendships with each one of her patients who are willing to accept her help as their navigator, and she says she’s learned something new from each patient that she’s cared for—something she’s been able to, in turn, use to care for her next new patient. Libby shares that she has “shed lots of tears” both alone and with her patients, and she feels that opening herself up in that way helps make a strong connection between her and the patient in front of her.

An in-depth interview of Libby Daniels will be featured in the December issue of The Oncology Nurse-APN/PA®, a partner with the Academy of Oncology Nurse & Patient Navigators organization.

About The Oncology Nurse-APN/PA® (www.theoncologynurse.com)

The Oncology Nurse-APN/PA® features articles written by and for oncology nurses and specifically addresses the issues nurses and their colleagues face every day in clinical practice. In addition to news on the latest research findings and results of large clinical trials, issues include interviews with thought leaders, articles of interest to student nurses, and articles on lifestyle topics, such as nutrition, stress management, personal finance, and communication and time management skills. Through its partnerships, The Oncology Nurse-APN/PA® offers readers the opportunity to earn FREE CE credit each month by completing the continuing education activity included in each issue.

About the Academy of Oncology Nurse & Patient Navigators (www.aonnonline.org)
The Academy of Oncology Nurse & Patient Navigators, Inc. (AONN+) is the largest national specialty organization dedicated to improving patient care and quality of life by defining, enhancing, and promoting the role of oncology nurse and patient navigators. Our organization currently consists of more than 4000 members, and was founded in 2009 to provide a network for all professionals involved and interested in patient navigation and survivorship care services to better manage the complexities of the cancer care treatment continuum for their patients. We view our organization as one consisting of “professional patient advocates,” and to that end we support and serve our members.