Newsworthy

Congratulations to Tracy Duran, Regional Director and Administrator, Flint Hills Campus, for receiving the 2023 Clyde Clifton Leadership Award! Sponsored by the Stormont Vail Foundation, the Clyde Clifton Award honors its namesake, who served as Stormont Vail’s Chief Financial Officer for more than 40 years. The award recognizes managers, supervisors, charge nurses, and directors who demonstrate exemplary leadership.

Tracy received two nominations from Connie Wagers, System Director of Medical Imaging Services, and Angela Gamber, Vice President of Clinical Operations. The Stormont Vail Foundation presented the award to Tracy to recognize her honesty, integrity, and embodiment of the mindset that success begins from a team approach.

In 2022, Duran accepted the challenge to be part of the transition team following the acquisition of what is now Stormont Vail Health’s Flint Hills Campus, ultimately choosing to stay as part of the leadership team. While her primary responsibility was clinical operations oversight, her ability to create an environment of trust and respect during a challenging time uniquely displayed her leadership skills.

Those skills continued to evolve over the past year as she led the Joint Commission site visit, making it a learning opportunity for team members through modeling the benefits of a partnership relationship with regulatory agencies. She has also worked diligently with the Flint Hills management team and achieved notable successes in improving patient care, creating a positive work environment, and fiscal responsibility.

Take a moment to read Tracy’s full nominations below.

Nomination #1 – Submitted by Connie Wagers

Clyde Clifton Leadership Award nominees must lead by positive example, emphasize fairness, and display sound judgment and respect in their dealings with others. Candidates for this award must also demonstrate a desire to teach, mentor, and coach and a high motivation to learn and excel beyond their present level and ability.

Honesty and integrity are two words I would use to describe Tracy Duran and are only the beginning of what I would like to share about someone so deserving of the Clyde Clifton Leadership Award. I’ve known Tracy Duran for many years in her various roles since she started at Stormont Vail Health 18 years ago. In each position, she closely interacted with the Medical Imaging Team, whether in the ED as a new nurse, overseeing regulatory expectations, or providing care as a bedside nurse.

As Tracy moved into her leadership role as Regional Director of Nursing, her many positive traits clearly began to flourish. Over the last year, I’ve had the opportunity to watch Tracy continually grow in her leadership ability, leadership style, and integrity. Since receiving a wonderful opportunity to work as the Regional Director of Acute Care in the Flint Hills Region, Tracy’s primary responsibility has been oversite at the Flint Hills Campus location.

This opportunity helped define her as a leader and build trust during a transitional period for team members at the Geary Community Hospital. The team sometimes struggled to believe Stormont Vail Health had their best interest in mind. This past year, Tracy helped to eliminate these concerns and demonstrated her ability to represent Stormont Vail Health in several important moments.

I was extremely impressed with how Tracy handled the Joint Commission site visit in June 2023 at our Flint Hills Campus. She interacted with the surveyor in a professional, non-confrontational manner, leading to a positive experience for all teams involved. This point was an incredible mentoring and teaching moment for Flint Hill Campus’s current managers on the importance of partnering with regulatory agencies rather than fearing them.

I’ve spent a fair amount of time at the Flint Hills Campus over the last six months and had the privilege of working with Tracy on improvements. I feel a sense of pride each time I’ve had the privilege to witness Tracy working with the Flint Hills Campus management team. Her respect for the management team is evident, and you can see in the interactions that the trust and respect for Tracy are mutual.

Creating trust and respect in the best situations takes work, yet Tracy achieved this objective during a challenging moment. Her ability to show fairness and honesty in her interactions, even during difficult conversations, has been impressive. Additionally, she has focused on patient care, creating a positive environment for team members, and fiscal responsibility.

While developing a budget for a new location, Tracy embraced the challenge. If she was unsure of what she needed, Tracy didn’t hesitate to reach out to those who could help her. She made sure she could speak to the needs of the departments based on what the management team shared with her and spent additional time reviewing the information to ensure she could communicate it effectively to upper leadership.

Tracy believes that success stems not from one individual but from a team approach. She demonstrates how a true leader should present to all she encounters. Her approach is sincere and genuine for the best interest of all she meets.

Nomination #2 – Submitted by Angela Gamber

Connie could not have said it any better. I agree that Tracy Duran is well deserving of this leadership award. I would add that she has been incredibly responsible and dependable. Tracy truly sacrificed to lead the nursing and acute care operations on our Flint Hills Campus. She has become very self-aware and provided a vision to the entire team regarding excellent patient care for our expanded community.