Alexis "Lexi" Ladage, BSN, RNC-NIC

It wasn't a NICU patient that Lexi took care of that earned her my nomination. It was me, a nurse that doesn't even work on her unit. I should have written this sooner, but I was too embarrassed. This still weighs on my mind months later, showing just what an impact her actions had on me that day. I was floated to NICU 4 when I was 24 weeks pregnant. Early into the shift, I was scared I had a pregnancy complication/emergency. I walked over to the ANM office to let them know that I needed to leave to get checked out. I was doing alright staying calm until the words came out of my mouth. I immediately went into panic mode and was frozen in fear. This was even scarier for me because I'm typically someone who acts in these situations, but I couldn't think. Luckily for me, Lexi was there, so I didn't have to. She immediately took over. She grabbed my report sheets, had someone take my patients, and grabbed my stuff, which she carried for me. She found out where I needed to go and walked me downstairs to get checked in and monitored. She didn't leave until I was settled. She reassured me multiple times that if I wanted her to, she would stay until my husband arrived. She put her number in my phone and came back down a few hours later to check on me and make sure everything was okay. She shared her own experiences with me to comfort me. I can't even begin to explain how much everything she did that day meant to me. I had never been so scared in my life, but Lexi was able to keep me somewhat calm and get me where I needed to be. I had never met her before. I don't work on that unit. I wasn't a patient or the family of a patient. She did not have to do anything, but she did. She went above and beyond and I will seriously forever remember her compassion. Even a few weeks later when I saw her on the unit, she still showed me kindness and shared another experience to ease my embarrassment from the whole situation. I can't thank her enough. Wolfson is so lucky to have her. Lexi, you are an extraordinary nurse and an inspiration to us all! Congratulations, you make us proud!