Pomerene celebrates 2026 DAISY Award winner Renee Conkle

Every year Pomerene Hospital’s DAISY Award winner comes courtesy of a letter from a community member who expresses their gratitude toward a specific nurse at Pomerene.

This year’s letter was especially meaningful because DAISY winner Renee Conkle’s quick actions helped save a life.

On Wednesday, May 6, friends, family and co-workers gathered at Pomerene to surprise Conkle with this year’s DAISY Award.

The DAISY Foundation created the DAISY Award to honor nurses who provide exceptional clinical care, compassion and support to patients and families. The award recognizes nurses who go above and beyond in demonstrating kindness, professionalism and dedication while making a meaningful difference in the lives of those they serve.

The DAISY Foundation was founded in 1999 by the family of J. Patrick Barnes, who observed the compassionate care nurses provided during his hospitalization. They created the acronym DAISY for Diseases Attacking the Immune System because Barnes suffered from an autoimmune disease.

The Barnes family created the DAISY Foundation to express their gratitude for nurses who took care of their beloved family member.

Today, hospitals and health care organizations across the country present the DAISY Award to nurses who are nominated by patients, families and co-workers for their commitment to compassionate nursing care.

Conkle’s nomination story makes it easy to see why she was tabbed as this year’s winner.

This past year Conkle was filling out paperwork one morning at Kinetics in Millersburg. That was when a patron, Tim Burgett, suffered a v-fib arrest while at the gym. Kinetics employee Susie Curtis and Conkle responded immediately with the AED and CPR.

Working together with Conkle taking the lead, they went to work saving a life. During the intense time, Conkle performed six minutes of compressions without switching out. Throughout the cycles of CPR, two shocks were advised and administered.

The nomination letter said, “Due to Conkle’s fast and high-quality CPR, along with early defibrillation, Tim is alive and well. He was able to attend his oldest granddaughter's wedding a week after his arrest. Renee did not falter; she did not hesitate. She saved his life. If he would have been anywhere else, the outcome could have been much worse. We are so thankful Renee was there and did what nurses do, saved his life. There is no gift too grand that we could give her for saving his life, but nominating her for the DAISY Award is the least we can do.”

Conkle, who graduated from Garaway High School, began her medical career pursuing dental hygiene but felt a higher calling. She shifted to nursing, beginning at Walnut Hills, and while in nursing school 15 years ago, she was enticed to continue her education at Pomerene. She’s been a picture of professionalism and stability there ever since.

She worked as an aide in med-care and in the special care unit, but the last six years have seen her dedicated to cardiovascular work.

This isn’t the first time Conkle has received the DAISY Award, having won it nearly a decade ago. She said she was surprised and started to get a little nervous when she was called up to the auditorium.

Like every nurse who has won the award, she said she was simply reacting and doing what came by instinct and training when the situation arose.

However, a routine day was anything but routine on that day.

“It’s such a blur,” Conkle said. “Susie was amazing, and instincts kick in and you just do whatever is necessary.”

The adrenaline was such that she didn’t realize who she was working on. When she pulled the paperwork, she realized she works with Burgett’s son and daughter-in-law at the hospital in the ER.

At one point Burgett’s heart stopped, and having the presence to bring him back to life was something Conkle said she’ll never forget.

“It was a domino of emotions,” Conkle said. “I don’t think there’s anything that compares to what took place. But it wasn’t just me; it was everyone involved with what took place that day.”

It certainly created a bond between nurse and patient that will never be broken.

Conkle said being a nurse at Pomerene is fulfilling because she enjoys caring for people in the community, whether it is a life-saving situation or comforting someone through trying times.

“It’s incredibly rewarding for me to serve in this capacity,” Conkle said. “I feel like I’m right where I need to be.”

In this instance she is 100% correct with that assessment, and one area family and one man will be forever grateful she is.

Pomerene Hospital CEO Anne Gunther said the nursing staff at Pomerene exemplifies the very nature of what nurses do: serving selflessly to support others.

“Renee embodies everything nurses exemplify,” Gunther said. “Health care is a team effort, and we have such a talented, dedicated group of nurses here who commit to doing their best every day. We are honored to celebrate Renee’s incredible work. What she and our nurses do is a true calling.”