Last week our family had the good fortune of experiencing the compassion and nursing expertise of Adrianna O'Neil. My 87 year old aunt had a major life threating pulmonary cardiac event. The doctors were not sure if she would ever recover. I met Adrianna when she started her 7:00 AM shift and walked into my aunt's room full of energy and hope. She was training an extern that day, and I listened to the conversation. I was so impressed with her deep understanding of medical science and thorough explanation of every aspect of care. Topics such as the importance of light and darkness and circadian rhythms and effective oxygen consumption, medication dosing, etc. She encouraged the extern to ask questions and also provided me with tremendous insight into my aunt's condition. I also observed her interactions with the many doctors and specialists on the cardiac unit. They clearly have the highest respect for her. Her clinical skills are outstanding and she has a gift for sharing complex information in a very understandable manner. There are so many examples I could provide, but sufficed to say that she is one of the best nursing professionals I have ever met. One example of her kindness and compassion and going above and beyond is that Adrianna took it upon herself to change her schedule to work on the day of my aunt's critically important barium swallow test. Her involvement provided valuable community of nursing care. Hours after the successful test results, she and her fellow nurses provided my aunt with a party complete with a party hat and horn. What an incredible experience and such thoughtful kindness. She represents the best and brightest in today's nursing profession. I hope one day she moves into a role where she has an even greater influence on the exposure of new nursing professionals. I appreciate the opportunity to share this positive experience and hope she is recognized with the DAISY Award.