Ohio’s Hospice Celebrates First Quarter of 2026 Bouquet of Recognition Honorees
Ohio’s Hospice staff members are dedicated to providing superior care and superior service to each patient and family.
Many times they go above and beyond, and those staff members are recognized with the Bouquet of Recognition Awards for Excellence. Honorees personify the qualities found in the mission and values of Ohio’s Hospice and are the foundation upon which remarkable patient experiences are built.
These honorees consistently demonstrate excellence through their expertise and extraordinary care of patients and families. They are recognized as outstanding role models in the Ohio’s Hospice community. These are the recipients for the first quarter of 2026.
Carnation Award – Zachary Cordle
Zachary Cordle, who works in IT Support, was recognized with the Carnation Award for helping a patient deliver a final keynote speech at a statewide conference from his bed in Ohio’s Hospice at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center – a Kobacker House.
The patient was also going to be honored as an outgoing chairman and for all his work for more than 20 years.
“This was very important to him and he was disappointed that we could not get him there due to his health issues,” according to the nomination from Jody Holstein, a hospice social worker. “He remained determined and we began to plan how to do this remotely.”
Zach and Julie Campbell, IT Director Mission Support Services, offered to help during what became a hectic week due to the patient’s declining health and conference logistics.
Zach arrived at 4 pm for a test run and stayed to make sure any glitches were quickly addressed and that the patient was able to sign out and back in when he needed a rest.
The patient was able to give his entire speech and say goodbye to the many friends he made.
“Zach remained so kind and patient and cheerful the entire time,” Jody said. “The evening didn’t end until about 7:45 pm and Zach stayed to ensure all went well. We could not have done this without him. He gave our patient his end-of-life wish and we are all very grateful for his support and expertise.”
Congratulations to Zachary on being recognized with the Carnation Award and thanks to him for his support of the Ohio’s Hospice mission.
Ohio’s Hospice is proud to be a DAISY Award® partner, recognizing nurses with this special honor quarterly. The international program rewards and celebrates the extraordinary, compassionate and skillful care given by nurses every day.
Deb Sell, a registered nurse in our Inpatient Care Unit in Troy, was recognized with the DAISY Award for her compassion and care for a patient and his daughters on the end-of-life process as he was rapidly declining.
The patient was on a Left Ventricular Assist Device (LVAD) and staff knew the plan was to turn the LVAD off when the patient declined to the end-of-life, according to Kristina Benson, Deb’s team leader.
The patient was becoming less responsive throughout the day, and his daughters decided to turn off the LVAD. Deb offered to stay into the night shift (working 16 hours) to be with the family and deactivate the LVAD.
Deb told Kristina that the thought of leaving them made her want to cry and she had been trained that morning on how to successfully turn the device off.
Kristina received feedback that day from three of Deb’s teammates:
“Deb is so selfless, and just does the right thing. She made sure all of the staff in the room were quiet, so that the last voices he heard were his daughters at bedside.”
“Thank you, Deb Sell for your leadership and helping us prepare so it would go as smoothly as it did.”
“Deb instructed us on what we were going to do before we entered the room. I was so impressed with her.”
Deb also pulled her teammates aside after the patient died and had a debrief before going back to work.
“I was so touched by her dedication to our mission and the empathy she shows for patients/families, not on this day, but every day,” Kristina wrote in the nomination.
Congratulations to Deb on being recognized with the DAISY Award and thanks to her for her support of the Ohio’s Hospice mission.
Sunflower Award – Bethany Delk
Bethany Delk, a Personal Care Specialist in our South Care Region, was recognized with the Sunflower Award for how she provides care for her patients. She was nominated by three people including one staff member.
Bethany was lauded for how she helped one patient take a shower despite a bathroom not set up well for someone in a wheelchair. She also was supportive of the family, listened to concerns, offered suggestions, and advised the family when their mother was getting too unsteady to be cared for in the home environment.
“I would definitely recommend Bethany to anyone who needs hospice home care,” the first nominator said.
The second nominator offered kudos for treating his mother with a “great deal of respect and dignity.” She treated the patient like she was family and allowed her to do as much as she could for herself. Bethany also was very kind and supportive to the family.
“Bethany was certainly a blessing to my mom and our family,” the nominator said.
Lastly, Amanda Spriggs, Bethany’s supervisor, nominated her after the staff at Otterbein raved about how she goes above and beyond with the care she gives their patients.
“One particular patient has behaviors, and Bethany has found a way to give care to this patient by playing music and singing,” Amanda wrote. “The patient calms down and sings and has a great time.”
Amanda added that Bethany takes her time with each patient, communicates well and is always willing to assist.
Congratulations to Bethany on being recognized with the Sunflower Award and thanks to her for her support of the Ohio’s Hospice mission.
Tulip Award – Dr. Jennifer Kline
Jennifer Kline, a team physician, received the Tulip Award for her overall work ethic and how she helped a teammate with a particular patient.
According to Carlie Kovach-Romero, an Advanced Practice Registered Nurse, Jennifer regularly comes to work early, stays late and even puts in time on her days off to make sure patients are well taken care of, even during a major snowstorm when she chose not to work from home.
In the nomination, Carlie wrote that upon reaching out to Jennifer about a patient with a urinary tract infection, Jennifer knew right away who the patient was and the details of their recent UTIs and overall situation.
“I was blown away, she remembers everything,” Carlie wrote. “The patient’s daughter was concerned about her dad and his situation. Dr. Kline went to see this patient, his daughter, and other members of his care team that day to ensure he got the appropriate care, and she provided education to the team and family. I’m a better provider and person because of her.”
Congratulations to Dr. Kline on being recognized with the Tulip Award and thanks to her for her support of the Ohio’s Hospice mission.
