Salinas Valley Health Daisy Award Recipient Shares Healthcare Bond with Mother

Media Contact: Karina Rusk
831-759-1843

The latest DAISY Award recipient at Salinas Valley Health followed in her mother’s footsteps and grew from a little girl to a dedicated care giver at Salinas Valley Health Medical Center. Taylor Houlette, RN joined the Healthcare System in September of 2017 and is currently a nurse in the Heart Center.

As a young girl, Taylor would shadow her mother at the hospital during take-your-daughter-to-work day. On one of those occasions in 1998, a photographer from the Monterey Herald newspaper captured Taylor hand in hand with her mother, Jill Houlette, a respiratory therapist. A laminated copy of that news article is posted on Taylor’s locker and was close by when Taylor received the DAISY Award for outstanding nursing care.

One of Taylor’s recent patients nominated her for the DAISY Award after being impressed with the extra effort Taylor made to make sure the patient was able to get her heart medication. The pharmacy had made an error in processing the order and by the time the patient noticed she didn’t have the medication; the pharmacy location was closed for the evening. The patient wrote in part:

“I did not know who to call because it was the Hospitalist who wrote my discharge orders and I did not know how to get a hold of him. So I decided to call Taylor, RN. She confirmed that I needed to take that cardiac med that night. She said “let me see what I can do”. Twenty-five minutes later she said the missing med would be ready for pick up at a 24 hour location. I do not know what she had to do to achieve that, but I appreciate all the steps that must have been done, especially at the end of her 12 hr shift. I feel she went up and beyond and I can’t say how much I appreciate her help especially in light of just being discharged from an 8 day stay. Thank you Taylor!”

At the award ceremony, Taylor said “I feel so honored. I did something all of us do every single day and the letter expressing thanks just affirms why I wanted to be a nurse. I enjoy advocating for my patients.”

Taylor credits her mother for her desire to pursue a healthcare career at Salinas Valley Memorial calling her an inspiring role model. Not only did Jill Houlette care for respiratory therapy patients, Taylor’s mother helped develop and establish the Mark Velcoff, M.D. Asthma Camp which the hospital and respiratory team still offer to the community to this day.

Every month, Salinas Valley Memorial recognizes two extraordinary employees, one with a DAISY Award (for nurses) and another with a STAR Award (for all staff). STAR stands for the Salinas Valley Health values of Support, Teamwork, Accountability and Respect. Nominations can be submitted by patients, visitors and staff. Nomination forms and drop boxes are located throughout the hospital and online. To learn more about the awards visit Nurse Recognition | Salinas Valley Health or STAR Award | Monterey County Health System (SalinasValleyHealth.com).

Editor note: Photo attached: (left to right) Kelly Flower, RN; Taylor Houlette, RN and Lisa Paulo, RN, Chief Nursing Officer at Salinas Valley Health

About Salinas Valley Health

Salinas Valley Health (Salinas Valley Health) is dedicated to improving the health and wellness of the region through an integrated network of health care initiatives, services and facilities. In addition to an acute care, public district hospital licensed for 263 beds, the system includes Salinas Valley Health Clinics, a multi-location clinic expanding access to primary and specialty care, and offers 13 urgent care locations. Salinas Valley Health is one of the area’s largest employers with a staff of more than 2000, and is a leader in providing nationally recognized quality care. Collaboration is an important operating principle for Salinas Valley Health in such key areas as our Level III NICU which is operated in a joint venture with Lucile Packard Children's Hospital Stanford; The Madison Clinic for Pediatric Diabetes, partnership with UCSF; Aspire Health Plan, Monterey County’s only Medicare Advantage program; Community Health Innovations and Blue Zones Project Monterey County, building a community where people live longer and live heathier. For more information, visit www.svmh.com.