FORT GEORGE G. MEADE, Md.– Fort Meade Medical Department Activity (MEDDAC) leaders and staff celebrated the newest DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses honorees during a ceremony held at the Fort Meade MEDDAC Headquarters on Fort Meade, Maryland, Dec. 5, 2025.
Virginia Peters, Lynnette Petty, and Army Spc. Steven Miller were selected from 35 nominations to receive the award.
The DAISY award, which stands for Diseases Attacking the Immune System, recognizes nurses who provide exceptional care and compassion by collecting nominations from patients, families, and co-workers.
Leaders at the ceremony emphasized the impact and importance of the award in the nursing profession.
“The DAISY award is a special award because it reminds us of why many of us joined this profession in the first place,” said Army Lt. Col. Derral W. Prowant, Kimbrough’s chief nursing officer. “Healing is more than medicine. It is connection, trust, and presence.”
“The DAISY Award is so special because it’s not a top-down award,” said Army Col. Louis Magyar III, Fort Meade MEDDAC’s deputy commander for nursing. “To be recognized by our patients–by the people that we care for and that they’ve entrusted us to care for them–is probably one of the most [important] recognitions that you could ever receive as a healthcare provider,” Maygar added.
Peters, a registered nurse at the Dunham Army Health Clinic, Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania, was nominated by a patient after Peters provided thorough patient support during appointments, addressed concerns, and enhanced the patient’s understanding with a home medical device. Peters made the patient feel valued and cared for throughout the process. “She is undoubtedly one of the best nurses that I have ever experienced,” according to the patient.
Petty, a licensed practical nurse at Kimbrough Ambulatory Care Center, Fort Meade, Maryland, was nominated by a grateful patient who highlighted Petty’s “outstanding professionalism,” sharing that she “immediately took actions” and even escorted them to the pharmacy to secure a time-sensitive prescription. The patient called her support “above and beyond” and credited her “compassion and determination” for resolving the issue.
Miller, a combat medic specialist at Kirk Army Health Clinic, Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland, was nominated by a patient who commended Miller for being “an exceptional medic” whose professionalism and thorough review of hospital notes and history showed “the absolute intent of getting me [the patient] help.” The patient added that he is a credit to his profession and to Kirk Army Health Clinic.
The DAISY Award is part of an international program that celebrates nurses who go above and beyond to provide exceptional patient care. Nominees are selected based on patient, family, and staff submissions describing meaningful moments of clinical excellence and compassion.
Winners received a certificate, pin, and “The Healer’s Touch” serpentine stone sculpture, which is hand-carved by artists of the Shona Tribe in Zimbabwe who hold their traditional healers in high esteem.
The DAISY Foundation was established in November 1999 by the family of J. Patrick Barnes who died Age 33 of complications of an autoimmune disease known as Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura. The Barnes family was overwhelmed by the compassionate nursing care received throughout the course of their hospital stay and formed the foundation to express their gratitude and recognize excellence in nursing.