Honoree: Kim Wilson, RN, BS, MS

Vice President of Patient Care Services and CNO
Mercy Gilbert Medical Center
Vice President of Patient Care Services and CNO Mercy Gilbert Medical Center, 2010 Health Care Leadership AwardsEven before the doors opened at Mercy Gilbert Medical Center in 2006, Kim Wilson was shaping the hospital’s work environment, quality of patient care, clinical excellence and innovations.

As chief nursing officer, she has worked closely with other members of the hospital’s leadership team to establish an environment of “Pause, Reflect, Heal.” The Pause, Reflect, Heal concept is simple. For patients, it is a blend of clinical excellence with extraordinary compassion, crafted to heal both body and soul.

For the hospital’s leaders, it is a commitment to caring for the caregivers — a blend of tough-minded, yet tenderhearted leadership, balancing accountability with endearing relationships with staff.

At Mercy Gilbert, Wilson’s responsibilities range from planning and managing to maintaining direct and regular contact with the hospital’s patients. She plays an integral role in establishing a vision for and providing leadership in the delivery of excellent patient care, including plans for high patient and physician satisfaction, employee and patient safety, clinical education, and incorporating innovative technologies. In tune with innovation, she brings new technologies to the bedside. Along with ensuring that each patient receives quality care, Wilson wants patients to feel safe and to be able to heal body, mind and spirit. She does this through regular daily contact with patients and effective communication with the nursing staff.

Prior to joining Mercy Gilbert, Wilson spent 25 years in Bakersfield, Calif., where she served in several nursing leadership roles.

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Finalist: Linda Lindquist, RN

Director of Critical Care
Phoenix Baptist Hospital
Linda Lindquist, Director of Critical Care Phoenix Baptist Hospital, 201 Health Care Leadership Awards
In just two short years, Linda Lindquist’s impact on leadership and patient care is evident at Phoenix Baptist Hospital. A nurse for 40 years, including 30 in the Valley, Lindquist manages the critical care areas of the hospital.

Following the example she sets, Lindquist’s staff takes care of the sickest patients with kindness, compassion and technical excellence. In fact, Lindquist’s patients consistently have among the highest patient satisfaction levels at Phoenix Baptist. The reason? She personally visits all of the patients in her areas, which no doubt has an impact on their care and recovery. Lindquist is easygoing, with an approachable manner that makes working with her a pleasant experience. She serves as a mentor for her nursing partners, and as a resource for non-nursing leaders at the hospital.

Since joining Phoenix Baptist in May 2008, Lindquist has been given additional responsibilities, and is serving as interim director of the medical/surgical unit.

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Finalist: Peg Smith, RN, MBA

Chief Nursing Officer
Chandler Regional Medical Center
Peg Smith, Chief Nursing Officer Chandler Regional Medical Center, 201 Health Care Leadership Awards

Peg Smith, chief nursing officer for Chandler Regional Medical Center, has a true passion for patient care. One way she shares this passion is through a program she developed called the Medicine of Compassion/Day of Reflection. That’s when new and existing employees learn about how Smith expects care to be delivered, focusing on patient needs, compassion, communication, and healing of the mind, body and spirit.

Each day, Smith makes sure she anticipates her patients’ needs by including patients in making decisions about their care, communicating effectively with other members of the care team and, when patients go home, overseeing the team that calls them the next day to make sure the former patients are doing well. Smith joined the Chandler hospital in 1993 as the evening charge nurse in the operating room.

Since then, she has taken on increased responsibilities, being promoted regularly until she was named to her current position in 2001.

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