Monmouth Medical Center Lotus Award honoree Cristina Navarro is shown with her G6 teammates.
Long Branch, NJ, August 15, 2023 – A Monmouth Medical Center (MMC) Surgical Inpatient Unit Patient Care Associate (PCA) praised as smart, conscientious, and always patient-first from day one, has been honored with an excellence in caring award.
Cristina Navarro, a PCA on the G6 inpatient surgical unit, was recently honored with the Lotus Award, which was created to honor a PCA, Patient Care Technician or Mental Health Associate that has provided extraordinary, compassionate, patient/family-centered care. In nominating Christina, her G6 colleagues praised her for always striving to make G6 the best it can be. Noting that she is always on top of all her duties, is a part of multiple committees, precepts new hires, advocates for safety, and truly loves her patients and coworkers, they also shared:
“Cristina is the best PCA She puts her all into this job every day and it doesn't go unnoticed. Appreciation doesn't even begin to describe how all of the nurses feel about her. I am always relieved when I see her in the morning because I know it will be a great shift. I would love to see her advance her career in nursing because not only is she brilliant, but sometimes picks up on changes in the patients before we do because she is so involved in all patients care. She is what every PCA should strive to be. We are blessed to work with her, and I hope she sees just how appreciated she is. I could not do my job as an RN without her by my side.”
“Cristina and I have worked together for years. From day one, she has always been smart, conscientious, and always patient first. She develops relationships with her patients, telling them all how she is such a proud Mama of her son, Eli and his baseball talents. She makes sure all her patients get out of bed, are washed and their rooms are tidy, and she is quick to answer call bells. She also is the floor Unit Clerk. She always has the ADT board up to date and charts taken apart upon discharge. She really cares about the patients, her co-workers and our floor and is a great asset to Greenwall6. Besides all of that, Cristina is a Chair of the PCA domain committee, she is on the falls committee, & unit-based council co-chair. She is always looking for ways to improve the safety of our patients and staff.”
“The lotus flower symbolizes unity, growth, compassion, and strength. Cristina embodies all of these features, and so much more. I have worked with her for over a decade. What amazes me most is her natural ability to connect to her patients. She is in tune with them on so many levels, and is often the first to notice when something isn’t quite right. With their safety and well-being in mind, she ARCs up her concerns and is a true advocate for the patients. I can only imagine how many of her patients have had a better outcome because of her intuition and strong connection.
Cristina is the epitome of strength and growth. She is a very involved with training PCA’s, is a PCA domain champion and is part of the falls committee. She works well with doctors and nurses and goes out of her way to make sure g6 runs safely and smoothly and it’s the best it can be. This helps unify the g6 team so we can in turn to the best for our patients. With genuine compassion, she makes all her patients and their families comfortable and at ease. Many patients are nervous or uncomfortable being taken care of. She finds a common interest such as family or sports to connect to them and help them feel at ease. Her easy way of conversing with them in turn makes their hospital course more enjoyable.
Cristina is not afraid to speak up for safety. She is not only an advocate for the patients but she is an advocate for the unit as a whole. She wants what is best for the unit and will go above and beyond to make it happen. No task is too big nor too small and gives 110% each and every day. Her passion and drive is truly admirable. She inspires us all to fight for what is right and accept no less. I have never worked with a more deserving PCA of this award. We are all so lucky to have her and hope she can have the honor of the Lotus Award to recognize her for all of her efforts.”
Christina has been an employee of MMC since 2008 and has been a member of the PCA Response Domain since 2017, and is the current chair of this committee.
The Lotus Award is a quarterly recognition program at MMC. Lotus Award nominees’ names are all blinded and the nominations go through the hospital’s Patient Care Coordinating Council, which includes staff from Administration, Nursing Leadership and the Chairs of MMC’s Shared Governance Councils.
CONTACT: Kathy Horan
(732) 546-6317
Kathy.Horan@rwjbh.org