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This year, Apploi received hundreds of nominations for our Top Healthcare Workers Awards. It was incredibly difficult to narrow down the list of outstanding workers—but we are thrilled to share the four winners. Get to know them in the words of their friends and colleagues.


Please join Apploi in congratulating the Top Healthcare Workers of 2025 and extending our deepest thanks to every member of the healthcare community.

 

2025 Winners

Impact

This worker makes a positive impact throughout their community, inside and outside of the facility. They excel at forming connections and know exactly how to make other members of the community feel seen and cared for. Whether they’re leading a team or staying out of the spotlight, they make a difference in the lives of everyone they work with and care for.

Dennine Cook

Chief Corporate Communications Officer, Gurwin Healthcare System

“For more than 35 years, Dennine Cook has been a driving force behind the voice, visibility and vibrancy of the Gurwin Healthcare System. She has built a department rooted in creativity, integrity, strategy and compassion.

One of Dennine’s most celebrated initiatives is the Gurwin Annual Photo Contest, widely regarded as one of the region’s most joyful community outreach traditions. The winning images [taken by amateur photographers] are showcased throughout Gurwin’s Nursing & Rehabilitation Center, transforming hallways into galleries of color, memory and inspiration. They serve a practical purpose for residents and the Rehabilitation team, who use the images as motivational markers to encourage residents to walk from one photo to the next.

Dennine also championed the meaningful tradition of the Gurwin L’dor v’dor Calendar in our Assisted Living community. “L’dor v’dor”—from generation to generation—beautifully captures the essence of Gurwin’s mission. The calendar highlights resident portraits, stories, words of wisdom, and vintage photos, honoring their lives and contributions while fostering an intergenerational appreciation of history and legacy. Families cherish it, staff proudly share it, and residents feel truly seen.”

Julie Cook

Team Spirit Captain, Charter Senior Living of Gallatin

“[Julie] has helped drive our organization to being fully staffed, which is a tremendous feat in today’s employment market. What really sets Julie apart as a true trailblazer is her desire to build connection among the team. She embraces the “have fun at work” mentality and is continually striving to institute new protocols that improve staff satisfaction and engagement.

Since Julie assumed the duties of her role, team engagement is up 50%. By embracing our long-standing traditional staff retention activities while adding in new, fresh opportunities, Julie has helped build on our “tried and true” retention efforts while embracing Millennial and Gen Z preferences to offer the best to everyone on our team. Julie has helped improve communication by creating an environment that empowers everyone on the team to initiate change, voice concerns or generally just embrace the loyal, tenured, dedicated culture. Our retention rates are currently around 74%, among the best in our region.”

Innovation

To this worker, there’s no such thing as a boring job. No matter what task they’re working on, they find a way to inject it with a new life. A workplace trailblazer, they’re happy to try new ways to tackle their job. You can find them experimenting with new processes, suggesting tools, and keeping things fresh for their whole team.

Leadership

When you need inspiration, encouragement, and a sense of perspective, this is the worker you go to. They might be a supervisor, or they might be a team member with an amazing knack for stepping up to lead. They have natural influence, and they use it for good, boosting their coworkers’ morale.

Stephanie Rutledge

Owner, SYNERGY HomeCare of Beaumont

“Stephanie has spent her entire career caring for others, beginning as a young mother working tirelessly as a medic while pursuing her education. Her journey is a testament to perseverance, compassion, and the belief that one person can make a difference.

In 2010, Stephanie took a bold step that would transform home care in Southeast Texas: she founded SYNERGY HomeCare of SETX. For the past 16 years, she has poured her heart into building an agency rooted in compassion, excellence, and dignity. She [also] serves as an advisor to several SYNERGY HomeCare franchisees across the nation and is a mentor to all who know her.

Stephanie Rutledge is a visionary leader, a tireless advocate, and a shining example of what it means to serve with purpose. Her career—spanning emergency medicine, nursing, home care leadership, mentorship, and community advocacy—demonstrates exceptional dedication and an unmatched passion for improving lives.”

Robert Roney

Environmental Services Director, Charter Senior Living of Panama City

“With 15 years longevity, Robert is more than an employee. He is the heart of Charter PCB. He doesn’t just fix things—he anticipates needs. Whether it’s responding quickly to a maintenance request, rearranging a resident’s room to better suit their needs, or staying late to make sure everything is perfect for a special event, he approaches every task with a “whatever it takes” attitude.

He is often the first to step in and help with projects that are technically outside his role, simply because he cares about our residents. From playing the guitar, singing to our residents, passing meal trays, helping his coworkers personally, digging ditches in hurricanes to save the building, all the way to shoveling ice and snow in FL—the list goes on and on. Robert never says, “No.” He smiles and does it with his whole heart.”

Team Player

This worker’s power comes from their strong commitment to their team. They are motivated by a sense of purpose and will go out of their way to lend a hand.. Between their work ethic and their interpersonal skills, it’s no wonder they’re such a treasured coworker and friend.