The COVID-19 pandemic has brought about countless challenges in 2020. It has also brought about new opportunities for growth, and it has shined a spotlight on the vital, life-saving work of nurses across the county.
During Nurses Week in May 2020, the Birmingham-based news company This Is Alabama issued a call for Alabama’s top nurses. After receiving hundreds of nominations, the Alabama Media Group recognized nurses from across the state during the “This is Alabama Top Nurses 2020” virtual ceremony on September 24. Two UAB School of Nursing alumni and one student were recognized during the celebration.
UAB School of Nursing Associate Professor and UAB Hospital Chief Nursing Officer Terri Poe, DNP, RN, NE-BC (BSN 1986, DNP 2013), and Masters of Science in Nursing student Frederick Richardson, BSN, RN, were named the Top 10 Most Inspiring Nurses in Alabama. Assistant Professor and Children’s Chief Nursing Officer Andrew Loehr, DNP, RN, CNML, CPNP (DNP 2018), received the Nurse Executive Leadership Award.
“We are grateful for all of the nurses throughout our state and across the globe who are caring for their communities during the COVID-19 pandemic,” said UAB School of Nursing Dean and Fay B. Ireland Endowed Chair of Nursing Doreen C. Harper, PhD, RN, FAAN. “This year has asked us all to adapt, to sacrifice, and to grow, and we appreciate This Is Alabama for highlighting so many wonderful nurses. Congratulations to all recipients, including those from our UAB School of Nursing.”
Poe joined UAB Hospital as Director of Emergency Services in 2009 before being named Chief Nursing Officer in 2014. When asked at that time about the most memorable part of her career, Poe said it was when the F5 tornado hit Birmingham in 2011. The care provided to so many patients at one time offered many challenges, but it was also a great display of teamwork.
“As a nurse, you find rewards in the many hats that you choose to wear,” Poe said. “Making people feel better, participating with a great team, and helping to fix what is broken are all rewarding tasks.”
Richardson is on the School’s Nursing Health Systems Administration (NHSA) Leadership Pathway and serves as Vice President of the Alabama State Nurses Association. He was inspired to become a nurse after an injury left him unable to walk for months. The nurses who helped him recover served as his inspiration, and as a nurse, he prioritizes patient care and experience in his role at Madison Hospital.
“When you interact with a patient, you never know what they’re going through,” he said, “and a lot of times, they’re at the darkest moments of their life. When I’m able to come into their lives and if possible heal them, if possible have them leave better than they came, I feel like that makes all the difference for me as a nurse.”
The Nurse Executive Leadership Award is given to a senior leader who demonstrates exceptional leadership guidance and service to their organization and the nursing profession. Loehr previously served as Vice President of Nursing Operations at Children’s before becoming Chief Nursing Officer in January 2020.
“Thank you so much to the Alabama Media Group for recognizing me for this amazing award. I am so honored and proud to be in the role that I’m in, which has been my most challenging to date, but also my most rewarding,” Loehr said in an acceptance video, “to serve the children and families of Alabama and the nursing workforce that is providing services to them. It’s awards like these that kind of fill my bucket and helps me keep going, so I want you to know how much it’s appreciated by me.”
