Melanie Glacken, CNA, CHPNA, is the recipient of the 2014 Cynthia L. Nugent Clinical Excellence Award in Hospice and Palliative Care. She was nominated by her peers for this award, which recognizes a Compass Regional Hospice clinical care provider who has shown outstanding dedication and excellence in caring for terminally ill patients and assisting their families.
Glacken has been a hospice aide for Compass Regional Hospice, formerly Hospice of Queen Anne’s, for 18 years. One of the award nominators wrote, “Mel has a smile that lights up a room. Her clients look forward to seeing her; she makes them feel safe and comfortable in her care.”
The Cynthia L. Nugent Clinical Excellence Award in Hospice and Palliative Care is named in honor of hospice nurse Cynthia Nugent, who dedicated eight years of her life to Hospice of Queen Anne’s.
After Cynthia’s death in 2009, her husband, Bob, wanted to honor her work as a hospice nurse and recognize the excellent care she received as a patient at the Hospice Center in Centreville. Bob Nugent proposed creating an annual award that would honor Cynthia’s memory by recognizing a staff member whose work meets high levels of excellence.
Bob Nugent says, “Cynthia thought the world of all of her colleagues. Although she had a career in the military and in government service, she found her calling when she came to hospice. She believed that caring for terminally ill patients was both a duty and an honor.”
Heather Guerieri, executive director, Compass Regional Hospice, says, “Like Melanie Glacken, Cynthia made her patients laugh and smile with her contagious humor. She always went the extra mile. When our patients and her colleagues needed her, Cynthia was there. We can say the same for Melanie, who is respected by her co-workers and loved by her patients.”
Other Compass Regional Hospice staff who have earned the Cynthia L. Nugent Clinical Excellence Award in Hospice and Palliative Care include social worker Sharon Loving, hospice aide Beverly Baynard, hospice nurse Melissa “Missy” Willis, and bereavement counselor Rhonda Knotts.
Write a Letter to the Editor on this Article
We encourage readers to offer their point of view on this article by submitting the following form. Editing is sometimes necessary and is done at the discretion of the editorial staff.