November 10, 2016
Mather Radiology Nurse Cameron Gittens RN, CRN, CEN has received the Presidential Citation Award from The Nurses Association of the Counties Of Long Island, Inc. (NACLI) for “his outstanding dedication to education, leadership, sense of compassion, empowerment, and exemplary professional demeanor.” The award was presented November 3 at NACLI’s 2016 Awards Dinner & Ceremony in Howard Beach, NY.
A nurse for 21 years, Gittens began his healthcare career as an emergency medical technician for the NYC Emergency Medical Service and later became a paramedic. He became a nurse through the New York City Health and Hospital Corporation’s Career Ladder Program. While stationed at Battalion 57 out of Woodhull Hospital as a paramedic, he attended evening classes at the College of Staten Island and graduated as Valedictorian for the class of ’95.
He was recruited by Nassau County Medical Center because of his emergency medicine background and offered a staff nurse position in the Surgical Intensive Care / Burn Unit. He later worked at Brookhaven Hospital for 10 years and in 2006 joined Mather Hospital as an Emergency Room nurse. After six years as a Certified Emergency Nurse (CEN), he transferred to the Department of Imaging Services as a Radiology Nurse. He is currently pursuing a master’s degree in Nursing Informatics.
Founded In 1919, NACLI, is a membership organization for RNs and nursing students. The Association has been a leader in advancing the profession and promoting healthcare for all. NACLI’s members are practitioners, educators, administrators, researchers, and entrepreneurs. Membership offers opportunities in professional growth, networking, and leadership development.
John T. Mather Memorial Hospital is an accredited 248-bed, non-profit community teaching hospital dedicated to providing a wide spectrum of high quality healthcare services to Suffolk County residents, showing compassion and respect and treating each patient in the manner we would wish for our loved ones. Mather has earned the prestigious Magnet® recognition from the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), which recognizes healthcare organizations for quality patient care, nursing excellence and innovations in professional nursing practice. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) awarded Mather four stars – the highest of any Long Island hospital – for patient experience, safety, and timely and effective care measures based on publicly reported data from the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) Survey. Mather also was ranked 19th out of almost 250 hospitals in New York State in U.S. News & World Report’s annual Best Hospitals rankings.