Elliot Intensive Care Unit Only N.H. Care Team to Hold Prestigious Gold-Level Beacon Award

Elliot Health System’s Intensive Care Unit recently earned the Gold-Level Beacon Award for Excellence through the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN), an organization that shapes progressive critical care nursing practice. Elliot Health System’s Intensive Care Unit is the only care team with Gold-level award status in New Hampshire.

The Beacon Award for Excellence — a significant milestone on the path to exceptional patient care and healthy work environments — recognizes unit caregivers who successfully improve unit outcomes and align practices with AACN’s six Healthy Work Environment Standards. Units that earn this annual award with a gold, silver or bronze designation meet specific criteria established by AACN that represent the characteristics and components of the unit environment that nurses can influence to achieve nursing excellence. All awardees demonstrate dynamic and outstanding performance in the areas of: Patient Outcomes, Nursing Workforce and Work Environment.

“At Elliot, our care teams are supported, respected, and empowered, and this foundation directly leads to extraordinary achievements like the AACN Beacon Award. This recognition is a testament to our shared commitment to evidence-based practice, quality, and the dedication of our ICU team,” said Martha Dodge, MS, RN, CENP, CPPS, chief nursing executive and senior vice president of patient care services at Elliot Health System. “Being the only hospital in New Hampshire to receive the Gold designation speaks to the level of excellence our ICU team delivers every day,” Dodge added. 

(From left to right): Chief Nursing Executive & Senior Vice President, Patient Care Services, Martha Dodge, MS, RN, CENP, CPPS; along with Elliot Health System Intensive Care Unit Team Members: Clinical Educator, Sara Cormier, BSN, RN, CCRN; Resource Nurse, Stephanie Joyce, BSN, RN, CCRN, TCRN, Beacon Writer, Andrea Lee, MSN, RN, CCRN, TCRN; Clinical Nurse Leader, Jessey Dane, MS, RN, CCRN-K, CNL, Resource Nurse Melissa MacArthur, BSN, RN, CCRN, TCRN, and Nurse Manager, Lisa Krebs, MSN, RN CNL, gathered for a special celebration at Elliot Hospital.

AACN President Rebekah Marsh, BSN, RN, CCRN, applauds the commitment of the caregivers at the Intensive Care Unit at Elliot Hospital for working together to meet and exceed the high standards set forth by the Beacon Award for Excellence to achieve a Gold-level designation. These dedicated healthcare professionals join other members of our exceptional community of nurses, who set the standard for optimal patient care.

To further support Intensive Care Unit excellence while responding to increased patient demand for patients of varying critical care needs, Elliot Health System opened a newly constructed Adult Step-Down Unit in March 2026. This new care unit offers a dedicated space for patients who still require considerable care but have graduated from intensive care needs.