August 2026 Honoree
Albert Deogracias, BSN, RN
Waking up from anesthesia, I was in uncontrollable pain. My teeth were chattering, my legs were shaking, tears were in my eyes, and begging for someone to help me. I recently had several surgeries on my skin due to melanoma and never woke up like this. I also have 20+ years of nursing experience and didn't know how to help myself.
The first person I remembered was my PACU nurse Al, calm with his hand on my shoulder, saying everything I needed to be reassured. Things like surgery went great, and now we were going to tackle getting on top of this pain together. He sat down with me to talk calmly, gave me more pain meds, provided comfort in presence, positioning, and heat packs, and got a doctor in my room for different orders when one thing wasn't touching my pain.
My experience was completely changed because he was there to care for me, and I feel so lucky he was my nurse during my difficult time. This is nursing at its core: listening, presence, and advocacy for the patients you are entrusted to care for.
The first person I remembered was my PACU nurse Al, calm with his hand on my shoulder, saying everything I needed to be reassured. Things like surgery went great, and now we were going to tackle getting on top of this pain together. He sat down with me to talk calmly, gave me more pain meds, provided comfort in presence, positioning, and heat packs, and got a doctor in my room for different orders when one thing wasn't touching my pain.
My experience was completely changed because he was there to care for me, and I feel so lucky he was my nurse during my difficult time. This is nursing at its core: listening, presence, and advocacy for the patients you are entrusted to care for.
Thank you, Albert, for your exceptional compassion, advocacy, and dedication to your patients. You truly make a difference.
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