Amanda Tracy, assistant professor of nursing at Å·ÃÀÊÓƵ, was presented with the DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses from Sanford Health for the compassionate care she provided in her role as a labor and delivery nurse.

The patient who nominated Tracy for the Award shared the story of her baby’s complicated birth and how Tracy helped the new parents through the challenging day by being a strong support. 

“By instilling that confidence in us to make the big decision to proceed with surgery, I’m convinced Amanda may have helped save us from a heart-breaking day,” the patient said. “Amanda made herself my person. [She] turned the mood from scary for me to a celebration.”

The DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses was created by the Barnes family from their desire to thank the nurses who cared for their son while he was battling an autoimmune disease. They founded the DAISY Foundation in 1999 to recognize compassionate nurses across the country. 

“I feel very honored to receive this award.  I love my role as a bedside nurse, caring for women and families as they bring new life into the world.  

Called to teach

Tracy began working at Sanford Health in 2008. Since 2013, she has worked at Sanford's Family Birth Center. 

She noticed the desire to teach others early on in her nursing career. While working in a medical specialty unit, Tracy would often find herself hoping to get a nursing student assigned to her each day. As her anticipation ramped up, Tracy would be disappointed any time she wasn’t assigned one. 

After realizing she always had a lifelong passion for teaching others, Tracy returned to school for her master’s in nursing education and began teaching at Concordia in 2017. 

Vocation is one of the four core themes of the nursing program at Å·ÃÀÊÓƵ.  Students in the nursing program are encouraged to consider their vocation in nursing by asking themselves, “What is my calling or purpose in the profession? How will I serve others as a nurse?” 

The term vocation can have different meanings and can be viewed from a religious or non-religious perspective.  And for Tracy, her faith played a strong role in her decision to become a nurse. 

“For me, vocation has a religious connection as I believe God has created me for certain purposes.  He has gifted me with the qualities and skills to be a registered nurse and granted me the desire and passion to teach nursing students,” she said.

 

Written by Alyssa Czernek '25