Ashley Tharp, RN – Recipient of the DAISY Award

Congratulations to Ashley Tharp, RN, for winning our most recent DAISY award. Ashley is a Labor and Delivery nurse. Here’s what her nominator said about her:

“I was induced on 12/15/25 to welcome our baby girl into the world. Leading up to my induction, I experienced new onset SVT at around 30 weeks. With many visits with MFM, echos, growth scans, and bi-weekly NST’s my life was so chaotic and overwhelming. Ashley Tharp, Madison Riney & Kaylen Holcer made every single NST enjoyable. Our 5 year old had to attend a couple appointments and she was never made to feel like she was in the way or a bother. Kaylen let our daughter help her gather the strip from the NST. She explained what the strip read and why we had to monitor her mommy and baby sister. Kaylen let our daughter talk her ear off and not once acted annoyed with her hundreds of questions. Ashley always had snacks and water for our daughter and talked to her about what we were doing. Madison always approached me with a big smile on her face and asked how I was feeling, which I truly felt like she cared and wasn’t just asking because she had to. As a mother, feeling like your children are important to others is a blessing. Ashley Tharp was my nurse for the day of my induction. She made sure I had everything I needed before I had to ask. She welcomed me and my husband with a smile and what felt like the same excitement we had. Ashley helped take care of me in a few of my many bi-weekly NST’s. Ashley was thorough, informative, and very friendly with every encounter I had with her. Throughout the day, Ashley was an amazing cheerleader while I labored. She made sure I always had fresh ice chips and made sure to educate me on many different positions to make labor easier. Ashley talked to me and took care of me like a friend, not just her patient. Ashley made sure to ask me about my birth plan and went over the print out I brought to insure everything went how I wanted it to go. At shift change, Kandi Poole took over my care. I was not familiar with Kandi as I didn’t have her as a nurse for any of my NST’s. I was a CMA at Memphis Medical Services so I was quite familiar with most of the OB staff. Kandi was truly amazing. She not only made me feel heard but made me feel like me and the baby was her top priority. Kandi had such a motherly approach and feeling about her. She made sure I was comfortable but was also very straightforward with what she was doing and what I needed to be doing. When things got a little worrisome, Kandi was fast on her feet and calm when she was telling me what she was doing, why she was doing it, and what we needed to be doing moving forward. Christine Hadeka arrived for delivery and was such an amazing support person! She stood next to me and held my arm telling me I was a rock star. She told us so many times that our daughter was so beautiful and that she was so proud of me. Christine made sure we got pictures of me and my husband with our new baby girl. Which truly meant so much to us. It felt like every person in the room was so happy to welcome our daughter into this world; it didn’t seem like just a job. Ashley, Kandi, and Christine made sure my husband’s needs were met, as well, through the whole process. The amazing care didn’t stop there. Samantha Murphy had answered every frantic text message or phone call no matter where she is or what she is doing to answer all of my questions. Samantha has helped me make a vaccine schedule for our daughter, as I have chosen to break up the regular schedule. Samantha never made me feel stupid or belittled me for making this choice. She has supported me. Brandi Lewis and Samantha have dropped everything to come and give our daughter her vaccines so I was comfortable in them being given. I cannot tell you a single other person who would do this. Ashley, Madison, Kaylen, Christine, Kandi, Brandi, and Samantha all deserve praise for their amazing patient care.”

The not-for-profit DAISY Foundation is based in Glen Ellen, CA, and was established by family members in memory of J. Patrick Barnes. Patrick died at the age of 33 in late 1999 from complications of Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura (ITP), a little known but not uncommon auto-immune disease. The care Patrick and his family received from nurses while he was ill inspired this unique means of thanking nurses for making a profound difference in the lives of their patients and patient families.

Bonnie Barnes, FAAN, CEO, and Co-Founder of The DAISY Foundation said, “When Patrick was critically ill, our family experienced first-hand the remarkable skill and care nurses provide patients every day and night. Yet these unsung heroes are seldom recognized for the super-human work they do. The kind of work the nurses at Scotland County Hospital are called on to do every day epitomizes the purpose of The DAISY Award.”

Chief Nursing Officer at Scotland County Hospital, Cassie Beard said, “It is evident that Ashley and the other OB nurses made an impact on this patient. The circumstances for which this patient writes of her experience, is proof that Ashley exemplifies the reasons the DAISY Award® was created by Patrick’s family.”