Returning patients request RN
By James Coburn, staff writer
A workday that might be normal for nurses may also be the first time a patient has experienced surgery.
Danielle Williams, RN, prepares patients for surgery at the Oklahoma Center for Orthopedics and Multispecialty Surgery (OCOM), located in south Oklahoma City.
Williams’ diligence, teamwork and compassion earned her the 2025 DAISY Award at OCOM.
“I was surprised, and it made me feel like what I’m doing here matters even more,” Williams said.
The DAISY Award is destined for a nurse that exceeds their normal duties in the profession and deserves special recognition. Guests, patients, nurses, providers, and employees are invited to nominate a deserving nurse who has made a meaningful difference in patient care.
“It’s so easy to forget how they might feel — the nerves they might have — how anxious they might be,” Williams said. “And I just never want to forget what it’s like to be on the other side.”
She tries to give grace whenever possible, she said. Some patients might be perceived as unfriendly, but Williams said nobody knows what their home life is like or what situation causes their need for surgery.
“So, I always try to have patience for everybody and find something that we can relate to outside of medicine,” she added. “And then use that to then relate to them at a personal level.”
Williams came to OCOM in 2024 after being a clinical research nurse for OU Health in Oklahoma City and a floor nurse at Norman Regional Hospital. Williams earned her Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree from Oklahoma State University in Stillwater.
The first thing that stood out for her when coming to OCOM was its high level of community. Williams could feel it. She knows faces, attitudes, and personalities that personify excellence.
“It makes working across units so much easier, and it just feels like a true community and a family here.” she explained.
Most patients she sees in pre-op ask about the process, how long they will be in surgery, anesthesia, and if the doctors and anesthesiologist will come speak to them. They ask about medications and if they will be transferred to another room. Loved ones ask if someone will call them following the surgery to answer more questions.
Curiosity at an early age steered Williams to a nursing career. In high school she questioned how lifestyle affects the human body and how it works.
“But I didn’t know that I cared so much about the patient side until I started going to hospitals and doing clinicals, seeing what’s going on outside of textbooks,” Williams said.
Faces, families, stories, and the inner workings of different types of relationships formed a broader sense of humanity.
“Being here, I get to see a lot of the same patients come back,” Williams said.
One of her patients talked about how her surgeons had previously performed multiple operations on her. She told Williams that they had become family friends beyond the patient/doctor roles.
“Their families have gotten together, and she said, ‘You never know when you come into something like this, and you just assume they don’t care about you, and they just want your money. But I’ve never been treated like I have here. And I’ve never been treated by a doctor the way he’s treated me. I come here because I feel like I matter to this place. I matter to my surgeon.
That made me feel like I can be that for somebody and I can be that for an institution as well.’”
Nurse Manager Danielle Kendall, RN, said Williams comes to work every day with a smile. Her coworkers and doctors love her. And Williams is asked for by both coworkers and patients coming for surgery.
Nursing has made an impact on Williams by not taking responsibilities such as work and activities for granted, she said. Nurses need to work in an area they most care about. When they find it, they will know, Williams said.
“There’s so many people that want to do those things and they can’t because they’re in a hospital, and they can’t,” she continued. “And they’re praying for the life they used to have. They might be praying for the life they’re living now.”
Family, health, and relationships are the things that matter, Williams said. She and her husband have two boys, ages 13 and 9. They play outside, play video games together, and discuss the books she likes. They play board games or watch documentaries once a week, especially nature films.
