Since the Cameos of Caring® Program & Awards Gala was created in 1999, the University of Pittsburgh School of Nursing has honored 423 nurses. This year, 63 nursing professionals will be recognized at the Gala on October 17th.
2009 Cameos of Caring Awardees
Of the 63 awardees being recognized this year, 13 are graduates of the University of Pittsburgh School of Nursing. Several of these awardees are highlighted below:
Mary Ann Claus-Raible, BSN, RN
West Penn Allegheny Health System, The Western Pennsylvania Hospital, Pittsburgh
2009 Cameos of Caring® Awardee
Mary Ann Raible of Allison Park, is a Clinical Nurse III in the Medical/Surgical Intensive Care Unit at The Western Pennsylvania Hospital and inaugural chairperson of the Nursing Division's newly formed Professional Development Council.
Raible chose nursing so she could exhibit in her profession the qualities of caring, loving, and helping others that she saw demonstrated by her grandmother and mother. Reflecting on her more than two decades of experience since receiving her bachelor of science in nursing degree from the University of Pittsburgh, she says, "Nursing for me is not a career but a passion."
Raible finds her greatest source of job satisfaction to be "the people I work with; we have a great staff." She also loves her increased involvement in unit and hospital leadership and nursing research, although her heart remains at the bedside.
Raible has received numerous professional recognitions, including a 2009 Lois H. Hann Research Award from the Nursing Division for her study of inter-rater reliability of the FOUR Score Coma Scale in the ICU, a West Penn Hospital Medical Staff scholarship to attend the 2008 NTI Critical Care Symposium in Chicago, and appointment to West Penn's Academy of Excellence in 2007.
Marlene Cain Lucas, MSN, RN
VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System, University Drive
2009 Cameos of Caring® Awardee
Marlene Lucas was born in Pittsburgh, PA and resides in Tarentum. She serves as a RN on a Medicine/Telemetry Unit at VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System, is a 1st Lieutenant in the 339th facility of the Army and has been deployed to active duty status. Ms. Lucas graduated from Shadyside School of Nursing. She received a BSN from the University of Pittsburgh and a MSN from Chatham University. She earned a degree/certificate for Personal Care Home Administrator from the Community College of Allegheny County.
She enjoys caring and helping people. Lucas states, “It is my desire to enhance the nursing profession and hopefully provide other nurses with a strong sense of security in the work they provide to others on a daily basis.”
Lucas is an advocate for nursing. She believes that education is paramount for the nursing profession to further expand and grow. Ms. Lucas plans on pursuing a Doctorate of Nursing Practice post active duty service.
Lucas states, “I have the greatest opportunity, in support of the Global War on terrorism, to love and provide nursing care to those who deserve so much, but only ask that we be good stewards of their health condition.”
Darlene Averell Lovasik RN, MN, CCRN, CNRN
UPMC Presbyterian
Advanced Practice Awardee
Darlene Averell Lovasik has spent 32 years as a devoted advocate for the nursing profession. She is quick to correct those who refer to individuals in the nursing profession as “just a nurse,” especially nurses. “Nurses save lives every day,” says Lovasik. And they do it with skill and compassionate care.
Lovasik demonstrates this care when she interacts with patients’ families. Her office, located next to the visitor’s lounge on Unit 12 North, is often visited by family members to discuss their loved one’s condition. She listens, teaches, laughs, and cries with families as the patients progress through the continuum of care. “It is a privilege to be with the families when they hear good news. It is an honor to be with them as they go through the difficult times,” she says.
Lovasik graduated from Pennsylvania State University where she earned a bachelor’s of science in nursing degree. She then went on to receive her master’s of nursing degree at the University of Pittsburgh. She has been certified as a neuroscience nurse (CNRN) for 25 years and a critical care nurse (CCRN) for 20 years. She believes that “a nurse is never finished listening, learning, or teaching.”
She is a member of numerous professional associations and was profoundly moved while volunteering in the 2008 U.S. Transplant Games in Pittsburgh. “We see patients that may be struggling post-transplant. It was inspiring to see the shift from patient to person to athlete,” Lovasik says.