Labor and delivery registered nurse Anahi Fontanos, BSN, was named the July recipient of Lompoc Valley Medical Center’s DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses.

Fontanos was recognized during a surprise ceremony by members of the health care district’s leadership team and Daisy Nomination Committee, which includes a wide range of clinical and nonclinical staff.

“Anahi has the heart of a nurse. She loves her patients and it shows,” the nomination stated. “She is so deserving of recognition.”

On the nomination form, a coworker called her a “true listener” to her patients. Fontanos recently took care of a woman who experienced a fetal loss. She sat with the distraught patient and comforted her.

“The patient was so appreciative of her time and comfort,” the nomination noted.

The prestigious international award is part of The DAISY Foundation’s mission to recognize the extraordinary, compassionate nursing care provided to patients and families every day.

Fontanos’s nomination also included the story of how she went “above and beyond” in her job to help a patient who was struggling financially and had only recently moved to the United States. The expectant couple had no insurance established yet and were paying for their twice-weekly appointments with cash. After the delivery, Fontanos spent time learning about the patient and the family’s other children.

“Anahi asked if she could donate supplies, clothes, toys and her own baby swing to this needy couple,” the nomination noted.

Fontanos met the family at discharge and loaded their car with supplies and toys for all the children.

“The family was overjoyed and very emotional, thanking Anahi for her generosity,” the nominated stated.

An eight-year veteran of the U.S. Air Force and mother of three children, Fontanos earned her bachelor of science in nursing from Arizona State University and received her nursing license in 2016. She began work at LVMC last November.

Fontanos entered the medical field while serving in the military. She eventually achieved the rank of staff sergeant. Her husband is active duty at Vandenberg Space Force Base.

“It wasn’t until my mom got sick with breast cancer and I saw firsthand what the nurses really were doing for my mom that it made me want to go to school (for nursing),” she said, noting that her mom, Liliana Pelayo, passed away at age 42. “The care and compassion that they showed — it’s something I’ll never be able to thank them enough for.”

While working in the military, Fontanos worked in a labor and delivery unit.

“I just completely fell in love with the bond the mom and baby have, and everything that has to do with it,” explained Fontanos, who gave birth to her most recent baby at LVMC a year ago. “Just seeing the teamwork that everybody had here made me want to apply here and work here.

“Melinda (DeHoyos) is the most incredible boss. She’s always in the front lines with us. In any situation, she’s always so supportive. I couldn’t ask for a better team. The environment — everything I could possibly ask for. The patients are amazing. The providers are amazing. I have nothing but good things to say.”

The nonprofit DAISY Foundation was established in memory of J. Patrick Barnes by members of his family and honors nurses for making a profound difference in the lives of their patients and patient families. Barnes died in 1999 at age 33 from complications caused by ITP, or Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura, an auto-immune disease. DAISY is an acronym for Diseases Attacking the Immune System. The foundation was inspired by the care Barnes and his family received from nurses while he was ill.

LVMC nominations are reviewed by an internal committee of representatives from nursing, non-nursing and non-clinical departments.

In addition to a certificate, Fontanos received a DAISY Award pin and a sculpture called A Healer’s Touch, hand-carved by artists of the Shona Tribe in Zimbabwe.

More information about the award is available at daisyfoundation.org. To nominate a nurse at LVMC, Lompoc Health or the Comprehensive Care Center, see the nomination form at lompocvmc.com, under the Resources tab and Patient Feedback link.

— Nora Wallace is the public relations coordinator for Lompoc Valley Medical Center.