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Atrium Health Floyd Nurse Makes a Difference by Listening

​Marlee Jones, RN, Earns DAISY Award

Atrium Health Floyd Nurse Makes a Difference by Listening

ROME, Ga., Nov. 1, 2023 – Solving a communication issue can play a significant role in how patients feel while they are receiving care in the hospital. Marlee Jones, a registered nurse at Atrium Health Floyd Medical Center, has been recognized for her ability to overcome a language barrier to make a patient more comfortable.

Jones has been named a DAISY winner. The award honors beside nurses who provide outstanding care.

“The first time this nurse cared for this patient, her caring heart went to work, and she did what she does best: give the most outstanding care, patience and love." Those words are from the teammate who nominated Jones. “Before her intervention, I heard the patient frequently shouting and getting very agitated. I noticed a huge difference in him once she had a couple of days with the patient.

“This nurse spent much time sitting bedside with the patient while working on her laptop to ensure he didn't feel alone," the nomination continued. “She went the extra mile to get the patient an iPad so he could listen to music and watch movies in his native language. Afterward, he was like an entirely different patient, calm and smiling when I entered his room."

“The hospital can be frightening for a patient when they can't communicate their wishes," said Sheila Bennett, senior vice president and chief of patient services at Floyd, who presented the award to Jones. “This award today emphasizes how important it is to really see patients, to see their needs. Because they are all individuals."

Jones, a Pepperell High School and Georgia Highlands College graduate, was surprised by the honor. She has been at Floyd for 2 years.

“It means a lot to me because I really put in a lot of effort. I just love taking care of my patients," Jones said.

The family of Patrick Barnes established the DAISY Award after he died from an autoimmune disease while being treated in a Seattle hospital.

Bennett presented Jones with a DAISY pin and a sculpture entitled “A Healer's Touch." The DAISY sculptures are hand-carved for the DAISY Foundation by members of the Shona Tribe in Zimbabwe.

Jones and her teammates were also given cinnamon buns, a DAISY tradition because it was one of the few things Barnes could eat while he was hospitalized.

About Atrium Health Floyd

The Atrium Health Floyd family of health care services is a leading medical provider and economic force in northwest Georgia and northeast Alabama. Atrium Health Floyd is part of Charlotte, North Carolina-based Advocate Health, the third-largest nonprofit health system in the United States, created from the combination of Atrium Health and Advocate Aurora Health. Atrium Health Floyd strategically combined with Harbin Clinic in 2024 and employs more than 5,200 teammates who provide care in over 40 medical specialties at four facilities: Atrium Health Floyd Medical Center – a 361-bed full-service, acute care hospital and regional referral center in Rome, Georgia; Atrium Health Floyd Polk Medical Center in Cedartown, Georgia; and Atrium Health Floyd Cherokee Medical Center in Centre, Alabama; and Atrium Health Floyd Medical Center Behavioral Health, also in Rome. Together, Atrium Health Floyd and Harbin Clinic provide primary care, specialty care and urgent care throughout northwest Georgia and northeast Alabama. Atrium Health Floyd also operates a stand-alone emergency department in Chattooga County, the first such facility to be built from the ground-up in Georgia.

About Advocate Health

Advocate Health is the third-largest nonprofit, integrated health system in the United States, created from the combination of Advocate Aurora Health and Atrium Health. Providing care under the names Advocate Health Care in Illinois; Atrium Health in the Carolinas, Georgia and Alabama; and Aurora Health Care in Wisconsin, Advocate Health is a national leader in clinical innovation, health outcomes, consumer experience and value-based care. Headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, Advocate Health services nearly 6 million patients and is engaged in hundreds of clinical trials and research studies, with Wake Forest University School of Medicine serving as the academic core of the enterprise. Advocate Health is nationally recognized for its expertise in heart and vascular, neurosciences, oncology, pediatrics and rehabilitation, as well as organ transplants, burn treatments and specialized musculoskeletal programs. Advocate Health employs more than 160,000 teammates across 69 hospitals and over 1,000 care locations and offers one of the nation's largest graduate medical education programs with over 2,000 residents and fellows across more than 200 programs. Committed to redefining care for all, Advocate Health provides more than $6 billion in annual community benefits.