Strategic Partners, Inc. and The DAISY Foundation Announce Recipients of the 2019 Cherokee Medical Uniforms Nursing Conference Scholarship

LOS ANGELES, Jan. 30, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Strategic Partners, Inc., manufacturer and marketer of Cherokee and other leading medical apparel brands, along with The DAISY Foundation™ are pleased to announce the 2019 Cherokee Medical Uniforms Nursing Conference Scholarship Program recipients. 

Realizing the challenges nurses and their organizations face when covering the costs of professional development education, Cherokee Medical Uniforms created the Cherokee Nursing Conference Scholarship Program. This annual program provides financial assistance to DAISY Award Honorees pursuing continuing education to support their licensure, credentialing or overall professional development. 

Martha Harlow, a pediatric cardiology RN at the Fox Valley clinic of Children's Hospital of Wisconsin, was one of the inaugural scholarship recipients in 2017.  "From the time I started working in pediatrics in 2015, it was a goal of mine to attend the Congenital Heart Disease Conference presented annually by Children's Hospital of Philadelphia," says Harlow, who has been a nurse since 2003.

"I was looking to grow and expand my knowledge base and dig deeper into my specialty, and this is the go-to conference for my field. But with no education funds available, it would have been out of my reach.  Being able to attend this conference for three days gave me a foundation to continue learning and asking questions. It really set me on fire," she said. 

"Not only was this an outstanding educational experience for myself but an opportunity to bring the most recent information back to my colleague at the clinic," said Harlow. "And it benefited the families and kids that we help every day." 

More than 1400 DAISY Award recipients have applied for this scholarship since its inception. The panel of judges, representing a cross-section of nursing leaders, is responsible for making the difficult decision of selecting the scholarship recipients from a very competitive field. The DAISY Foundation and Cherokee Uniforms congratulate the following nurses awarded one of ten  $2,000 scholarships in 2019:

• Linda Arundel, Inova Fair Oaks Hospital (Fairfax, VA)
• Stephen Berg, Marshfield Medical Center (Marshfield, WI)
• Brian Frampton, Wolfson Children's Hospital (Jacksonville, FL)
• Lana Garcia, CoxHealth (Springfield, MO)
• Kelly Lombard, Southern New Hampshire Medical Center (Nashua, NH)
• Michelle Lopez Silva, Rady Children's Hospital of San Diego (San Diego, CA)
• Jenny Ratts-Harrison, Memorial Hospital and Manor (Bainbridge, GA)
• Victoria Reiser, UPMC Shadyside (Pittsburg, PA)
• Mary Rose Santos, Good Samaritan Hospital – Los Angeles (Los Angeles, CA)
• Tracey Wooden, Atlantic General Hospital (Berlin, MD)

"We are honored to help play a role in nurses being able to further their careers and provide a more profound impact on their patients and colleagues," said Mike Singer, CEO of Strategic Partners, Inc. "To know that we have had a hand in furthering someone's goals and impacting patient care for the better is gratifying."

Bonnie Barnes, co-founder of The DAISY Foundation, said, "The impact that Cherokee Medical Uniforms is making on the nursing community with this scholarship is immeasurable.  We are delighted that Cherokee is able to offer this much needed benefit to our Honorees."

To learn more about the Scholarship program, visit http://www.cherokeenursingscholarship.com.

About Cherokee Medical Uniforms
Since 1972, Cherokee has been known for comfort and fashion, and its ready-to-wear heritage informs the design and manufacturing of its medical uniforms. Designed to meet the specific needs of nurses and healthcare workers, Cherokee is dedicated to bringing style, personality and industry-leading performance to the millions of people who have dedicated their lives to patient care. Cherokee Medical Uniforms is a division of Strategic Partners, Inc. (SPI).

About Strategic Partners, Inc.
Established in 1995, Strategic Partners (SPI) is a leading designer and manufacturer of high-quality, fashion-inspired medical uniforms, footwear, accessories. Its brands include Cherokee, Dickies, HeartSoul and Disney. SPI is also a champion and supporter of nurses and other healthcare professionals. Since 2009, their Scrubs Magazine lifestyle media brand has reached millions of readers in print and online. SPI also sponsors the DAISY Award for Nursing Excellence, and is involved in numerous outreach and philanthropic activities. Their corporate headquarters and design studio are in Chatsworth, California.

About The DAISY Foundation
The DAISY Foundation was created in 1999 by the family of J. Patrick Barnes who died at age 33 of complications of an autoimmune disease (hence the name, an acronym for Diseases Attacking the Immune System). Patrick received extraordinary care from his nurses, and his family felt compelled to express their profound gratitude for the compassion and skill nurses bring to patients and families every day. The DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses® celebrates nurses in over 3,400 healthcare facilities and schools of nursing around the world. For more information about The DAISY Award and all of the DAISY Foundation's programs visit www.DAISYfoundation.org.

Contact:
Renata Ritcheson
Email:  [email protected] 
Phone: 818-671-2167

Cynthia Sweeney
The DAISY Foundation
Email: [email protected]   
Phone: 410-279-3095

SOURCE Strategic Partners, Inc.