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Price-Gharzeddine to receive top nursing administrator award
The Association of California Nurse Leaders will present the award to Price-Gharzeddine at the organization's annual conference on Feb. 12 in Rancho Mirage. "This is embarrassing for me; it's really very humbling," PriceGharzeddine said last week. "I'm very honored." The Association of California Nurse Leaders is a membership organization that advances professional practices, influences health policies and promotes patient safety and quality care. The organization recognizes best practices as those that advance the nursing profession, enhance the image of nursing, promote excellence in patient care and safety, and ensure satisfaction for patients and nurses. As chief nurse executive and vice president of ancillary services, PriceGharzeddine is responsible for the hospital's entire nursing staff and also for the laboratory, radiology and pharmacy departments and for patient and nurse education. On the job for only 20 months, the Woodland Hills resident has impressed the 14 managers and directors who work for her. They nominated Price-Gharzeddine for the award and in three other categories: Excellence in Leadership, Excellence in Advancement of Clinical Practice and Best Practice-Innovation in Professional Nursing. "She qualified for all of them," said Em Garcia, director of the hyperbaric unit. PriceGharzeddine is a Michigan native who began her career in the 1970s as a practical nurse- the equivalent of a licensed vocational nurse in California. She continued her education and a few years later became a registered nurse. She moved to California in 1985, the same year she earned a bachelor's degree. Four years later, she had a master's. About two years ago, Gerard Conway, president of St. John's Pleasant Valley Hospital, asked Price-Gharzeddine to head the nursing staff here. The two had worked together on executive committees for Catholic Healthcare West, which owns St. John's Pleasant Valley and San Gabriel Valley Medical Center, where Price-Gharzeddine was chief nurse executive. "I knew she was a great nurse leader," Conway said Conway credits her with helping boost the hospital's patient and employee approval rating. St. John's Pleasant Valley recently ranked first in employee satisfaction and in the 90th percentile in patient satisfaction among the 42 hospitals in the Catholic Healthcare West system. The corporation set a benchmark of 82 in employee satisfaction, but the Camarillo hospital surpassed it, scoring 97. Price-Gharzeddine said one of her proudest ventures since arriving at Pleasant Valley has been starting the hospital on the road to Magnet status, which is awarded by a leading nurse credentialing organization in recognition of excellent patient care delivered by a hospital's nursing staff. The chief nurse of St. John's Pleasant Valley said she wants the Camarillo hospital to be the first in Ventura County to earn the prestigious standing. "I truly have a passion for the profession," PriceGharzeddine said. "I'm proud to be a nurse." Price-Gharzeddine has been married for 23 years to Andrew Gharzeddine. They have two daughters: One is a premed college student, and the other is a junior in high school who plans on becoming a lawyer and nurse. |
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