Employee Awards
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Meet the 2022 Liota and Marren Award Winners!
June 21, 2022–Congratulations to the 2022 Liota and Marren Award winners: John Tawiah and Natasha Merjuste, who were nominated by their VNS Health colleagues and selected by a committee of nursing leaders! John Tawiah, Psychiatric Nurse, Bronx ACT Team, Winner of the Marilyn Liota Award The Liota Award to Promote Cultural Diversity in Nursing Leadership, named after long-time VNS Health nurse and Queens Regional Vice President Marilyn Liota, is awarded each year to help an exemplary VNS Health nurse realize her or his leadership potential. The award provides a $1,500 scholarship for expenses related to nursing studies, continuing professional development, or communication/English language skills development. “Fighting the stigma around mental illness, and helping my patients lead better lives, are my driving forces.” In the Ghanaian village in which John grew up, mental illness was viewed as demonic possession. He is haunted by memories of a childhood classmate who would occasionally vanish into the bush. “I’ve heard
Check Out the Latest ABCD and Initiative Award Winners—all 974 of them!
June 15, 2022–Here they are, all in one place – a list of team members who, over the past few months, have been recognized for going above and beyond in their work. Specifically, the list covers from September 1, 2021 to May 31, 2022 and features both ABCD Award winners and Initiative Award winners. All told, that’s 974 VNSNY team members! Congratulations to all! Click here to view their names.
Tara Hantman Is Named VNS Health’s Speech-Language Pathologist of the Year
May 19, 2022–VNS Health has announced that the Speech-Language Pathologist of the Year will be awarded to Tara Hantman. The award was recently presented to Tara at our Speech-Language Pathology Celebration event. Nominations for the award could be submitted by anyone in the organization. Leaders from the Speech-Language Pathology (SLP) and Rehabilitation teams then reviewed the nominations to select an awardee who best exemplified VNS Health’s values, including the organization’s Core Values of Empathy, Integrity and Agility, as well as exceptional service and going above and beyond to achieve the best outcomes. Congratulations to Tara on this honor!
Marjorie Delva Is Named VNSNY’s First Occupational Therapist of the Year
April 28, 2022–As VNSNY continues its recognition of April as Occupational Therapy Month, the organization has announced the winner of its inaugural Occupational Therapist of the Year award: 12-year VNSNY veteran Marjorie Delva. The award was presented to Marjorie at our first-ever Occupational Therapy Month Celebration event on April 28th. Nominations for the award could be submitted by anyone in the organization. Leaders from the Occupational Therapy (OT) and Rehabilitation teams then reviewed the nominations to select an awardee who best exemplified VNSNY’s values, including the organization’s Core Values of Empathy, Integrity and Agility, as well as exceptional service and going above and beyond to achieve the best outcomes. “Marjorie is reliable, resourceful, and passionate about the care she provides to her patients,” said one of her nominating letters. Another colleague praised Marjorie as “the most thorough OT I’ve worked with in a 30-year rehab career,” adding, “she has integrity, empathy and
Esther Conteh Receives Phyllis Mills Living Legend Award
December 10, 2021–The award, named for long-time VNSNY Board Member Phyllis Mills, was given in recognition of Esther’s outstanding contributions to care management models and processes during her 20 years with VNSNY CHOICE.
Latest ABCD & Initiative Award Winners – November 2021
November 30, 2021–Between February 1 and October 31, 2021, 902 VNSNY staff members have been presented with ABCD or Initiative Awards in recognition of the outstanding job they’re doing. Click here to view the complete list of our latest awardees!