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Crystal Caruthers, MSN, RN, NPD-BC has been named Holy Cross Health’s Leader of the Quarter for Q3 2025. She began her career at Holy Cross Health in 2008 as a member of the inaugural class of the Vizient/American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN) Nurse Residency Program at Holy Cross Health, the first nurse residency program in Broward County. Today, she is the Nurse Resident Development Manager and mentors graduate nurses.
In describing Caruthers, her team finds her to be an effective leader due to her superior communication skills, ability to keep them informed and the consistency of her actions. She also makes herself accessible to answer questions, to listen to her teammates and to bounce around ideas.
“Listening is an art. She knows when to listen and act or when to listen and pause to allow for us to think of a solution on our own,” said Lauren Didona, Nurse Resident Development Specialist, who nominated Caruthers. “She’s a role model that truly embodies our Trinity Health culture and core values.”
Didona also praised Caruthers’ willingness to get to know her teammates, learn their strengths and weaknesses, provide them with guidance and assign them a manageable workload. “Crystal is not just a leader of her team, but a nurse who affects nursing practice across this ministry and throughout our organization,” Didona added. “She’s someone who chooses nursing every day and leads with grace. I am grateful for and inspired by her leadership.”
For Caruthers, her love for the profession and clinical experience has driven her to make the Nurse Residency Program a solid framework for the growth and success of all nurses. Under her leadership, the program has demonstrated excellence in preparing residents for thriving careers in nursing. In its 17 years, 639 nurses have been trained and graduated. Last year, Holy Cross Health earned accreditation from the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) Practice Transition Accreditation Program (PTAP). The PTAP sets the standard for residency or fellowship programs that transition registered nurses and advanced practice registered nurses into new practice settings.
Caruthers has also spent more than a decade working at the bedside in the critical care setting, case management, care transitions and outpatient surgery. She has worked on initiatives focused on nurse retention and a healthy work environment and has served on numerous quality councils.
Caruthers has been recognized in the Salute to Nurses in South Florida Hospital News, which also published her byline on nursing residencies. She earned her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Barry University in Miami and her Master of Science in Nursing with a focus on nursing leadership and management from Western Governors University in Salt Lake City, Utah.
ABOUT HOLY CROSS HEALTH
A member of Trinity Health, Fort Lauderdale-based Holy Cross Hospital, dba Holy Cross Health, is a full-service, not-for-profit, Catholic, teaching hospital operating in the spirit of the Sisters of Mercy. Holy Cross has been recognized for six Types of Care in U.S. News and World Report’s 2025-2026 Best Hospital rankings and was named among the 2024 America’s Best-In-State Hospitals by Newsweek. Holy Cross has been designated as a High Performer by the Human Rights Campaign Foundation for LGBTQ+ healthcare access. Through strategic collaborations and a commitment to being a person-centered, transforming, healing presence, the 557-bed hospital offers progressive inpatient, outpatient and community outreach services and clinical research trials to serve as our community’s trusted health partner for life. Holy Cross Health also encompasses Holy Cross HealthPlex outpatient facility, an urgent care center and more than 40 Holy Cross Medical Group physician practices. To learn more about Holy Cross Health, visit holy-cross.com. Connect @holycrossfl.
