Carl receives prestigious nursing award

Bothwell Regional Health Center recently presented its latest DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses to Charli Carl.

The DAISY Award is for patients and their families to nominate nurses who give outstanding, compassionate and skillful care. Carl was nominated by Heather Denman, whose son received chemotherapy every three weeks for much of 2025 at Bothwell Susan O’Brien Fischer Cancer Center.

“The entire team is phenomenal,” Denman said. “I nominated Charli because every day she comes in, she brightens our day. She is not only a very smart nurse, but caring, empathetic and professional. She doesn’t just assess her patients. She listens to them and meets their needs. The world needs more nurses like Charli.”

Carl has worked at Bothwell for almost two years as a registered nurse in the Cancer Center. She said her path into nursing was shaped by experiencing care firsthand. 

“My son was sick when he was younger, and his nurses are what got us through some really tough times,” Carl said. “They weren’t just doing a job. They were our comfort, support and strength. They were our people. Now, I strive to be that for my patients and their families.”

She said one of the most rewarding parts of nursing is the relationships she builds.

“Getting to know patients and their families is a huge highlight of being a nurse,” Carl said. “So many of them become like friends and family.”

Carl said that is especially true with the family who nominated her.

“We saw each other every three weeks, and treatment was for a whole week all day long,” she said. “We spent a lot of time together and really got to know each other. They are like family now, and I look forward to seeing them when they come in for follow-up appointments.”

Megan Elwood, an RN in Bothwell’s Clinical Education department, presented Carl with a certificate congratulating her for being an “Extraordinary Nurse.” She also received a box of cinnamon rolls, a daisy bouquet, a DAISY Award pin and a sculpture called “A Healer’s Touch,” hand-carved by artists of the Shona Tribe in Africa. A DAISY Award banner recognizing her will hang in the clinic and Carl’s name will appear on the DAISY Foundation website.

The DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses was started in 1999 in Glen Ellen, California, by members of the family of Patrick Barnes, who died at the age of 33 of complications from an autoimmune disease. The care his nurses provided was the inspiration for the DAISY (Diseases Attacking the Immune System) Award.

An international award, the DAISY is awarded in more than 6,000 health care facilities and schools of nursing around the world, including 39 countries and territories. Bothwell Regional Health Center began recognizing its nurses with the DAISY Award in 2018. Jessica Wheeler, Shari Thomasson, Shasta Nardi, Courtney Rumans, Sarah Plante, Connie Roll, Ronda McMullin, Sarah Fredrickson, Sherri Egbert, Leslie Shapley, Seth Stotts, Stacey Nassar, Helen Fisher, Donna Cline, Linda Lower, Sarah Cordes, Reilly O’Shea, Heather Kaneko, Jenice Serrano, Emma Stone, Mattie Mergen and Patty King are previous recipients. 

To learn more or to submit a nomination, visit brhc.org/daisy.