BY KAREN BOSSICK
Lauren Hoover was overwhelmingly the staff’s choice to receive the 2022 Carl A. Gray Memorial Award for nursing excellence.
The award is given by the St. Luke’s Wood River Foundation’s board of directors and the Harvey Gray family to recognize a nurse who exemplifies excellence in their nursing practice.
Hoover is a certified emergency nurse, a trauma certified registered nurse and co-leader of St. Luke’s Nursing Shared governance. She is also very much a local, having begun her healthcare career as a high school student working after school and on the weekends as a cashier in the St. Luke’s Wood River cafeteria.
She went on to work in several other roles, including patient admissions. And, when Hoover went away to college, she continued to work at the hospital over Christmas and summer breaks.
After college she decided to become a nurse and went to nursing school at the College of Southern Idaho with the help of a healthcare scholarship provided by the St. Luke’s Wood River Foundation. She first worked at St. Luke’s in Meridian and then made it home to St. Luke’s Wood River (SLWR).
Highly skilled in critical patient care, she has been described as a “true ER nurse to the core, always ready for the unexpected.” Colleagues call her compassionate, thoughtful and mindful of her interactions with patients and colleagues. She always prioritizes the latest educational opportunities and encourages others to do the same.
Her colleagues describe her as one who is always there to answer questions and step in when needed. She’s “a nurse you want on your team,” said one.
“Lauren makes the Emergency Department a welcoming place and we all know that NO ONE wants to need to be there,” said another. “She advocates for her patients and inspires her colleagues.”
Megan Tanous, St. Luke’s Wood River Foundation chief development officer, noted that this is the first time the hospital has had the Carl. A. Gray celebration in person since the pandemic started.
“It is wonderful to honor the work that our nurses do every day,” she added. “These have been extraordinary times and our nurses all went above and beyond to help their colleagues and our community.”
The Gray family established the award in honor of the late Carl A. Gray, an avid Sun Valley Ski Club member.
Awards of distinction were also given in specific areas of the St. Luke’s core values. The honorees included Annie Leady, BSN, RN, CPAN – Surgical Services, who was recognized for Integrity; Elizabeth Solis, RN, ASN – SLWR Family Medicine, for Compassion; Jami Adrian, BSN, RN, RNC – Mother/Baby Unit, for Accountability; and Jason Lyman, BSN, RN - Surgical Services, for Respect.