Norma Hopper
For more than a year, Hopper has been caring for a woman (Ms. G.) with colon cancer. Mrs. G. was hospitalized with a small bowel obstruction. Her NG tube aspirate was copious, clogging the tube frequently, and causing great abdominal pain and anxiety to the patient. Hopper took care of her both days of the weekend. She was hyper-vigilant with the NG tube, flushing the tube frequently to prevent obstruction. This was time-consuming at best, but Hopper never made the patient feel that she was in a hurry. She always made this patient feel that she was the only one that Hopper was caring for. The reality was, she had five other patients to care for as well with as much compassion and understanding as Ms. G. Hopper was leaving for vacation, but it was clear that Mrs. G. was anxious about her care without Norma. Hopper gave the patient her cell phone number and told her she could call any time. A few days later, as Norma enjoyed time with her family at the New Jersey Shore, her cell phone rang. It was Ms. G’s daughter telling Hopper how things were going with her mom. Hopper never acted as though this was an imposition. She was glad to hear the update and to hear there was improvement. Even on her vacation, Hopper kept in touch with the progress of this patient. Hopper’s colleague who wrote this nomination explained: “This is way beyond the concept of duty in any profession, but in Hopper’s nursing practice, it is commonplace. She cares for patients with her heart and soul. Sometimes it is too much to bear on one pair of shoulders, but she never complains about it. She faces the lives and deaths of these patients as though they were her family. She is an impressive role model to me in my nursing career.” |
