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KP resident is ‘Nurse of the Year’
By Rodika Tollefson
KP News
Georganne Trandum, director of Gig
Harbor-based Improving Care Through the End of Life
program, was recognized in December with the Nurse of
the Year award by the Washington Chapter of the March of
Dimes. Trandum, a Key Peninsula resident, was recognized
for her leadership, one of several categories. The award
was in recognition of “a nurse who has demonstrated
exceptional leadership in nursing or patient care
services in any setting.” About 200 nominations were
received.
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Trandum |
Trandum was nominated by several
members of her staff, who wrote in the nomination
letter, “From pediatrics to end-of-life care, Georganne
Trandum, RN, has pioneered advocacy, innovation and
leadership in promoting excellence in nursing and within
her community.”
Trandum helped found the End of
Life program, part of Franciscan Health Systems, about
10 years ago with the goal of providing support to
patients with life-threatening illnesses and their
families. The program is based in Gig Harbor, and has
nearly 800 patients in 10 clinics.
Trandum said she was “shocked” to
receive the award. “It’s a recognition of the work I’ve
done. It holds nurses up as an example in all those
categories,” she said.
Trandum’s healthcare background
includes oncology and bone marrow transplant nursing.
She has received various other awards, including the
Circle of Life Award from the American Hospital
Association in 2000 and the FHS Strategy Pillar Award
for the Best Place to Work.
She has served on the Franciscan
Regional Ethics Committee for 14 years, and co-founded
the End of Life program as part of her ethics work,
realizing a new standard of care was needed for those
facing terminal illnesses.
“The tasks before her were
daunting: creating the EOL mission statement, writing
policies/procedures and operating manuals, developing
data collection software, recruiting and training staff
as well as extensive education for healthcare providers
and the community at large,” the nomination letter said.
“The results? Significant improvement in patient
satisfaction for medical care, reduced emergency room
and hospitalization utilization, increased hospice
utilization (81 percent) and patient-centered/directed
end-of-life care.”
Trandum travels around the country
to speak at conferences and educate healthcare
professionals and students. She authored a training
manual and helped hospital systems in three other states
to replicate the FHS End of Life program. Recently, she
added on additional duties, managing Franciscan’s
hospital-based palliative care consultation services.
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