Alyssa Long
April 2023
Alyssa
Long
,
BSN, RN
Short Stay
Trinity Health Michigan
Ann Arbor
,
MI
United States
Alyssa's heart is unwavering in kindness. Each patient she cares for she gives her very best.
I would like to nominate Alyssa Long for The DAISY Award. I was taken at 5:30 a.m. by ambulance to the emergency room at St. Joseph Hospital in Ann Arbor on November 8, 2022. After a series of tests, it was decided that I should stay overnight and be placed on a heart monitor. The only place available was in the short-stay facility. In the morning, after a difficult night, I was greeted by Alyssa. She introduced herself and assured me that she had reviewed my plan of care and had even looked at the results of the heart monitor. Next, she explained that a cardiologist was going to see me and I would then be taken to have an ultrasound test of my heart. Once the cardiologist had left, she stayed and asked me if I had any further questions. She was very knowledgeable and kept me informed of each next step, but it wasn't just what she said that I remember, but more of the feeling she left with me. Alyssa was, simultaneously, very professional, yet conveyed a genuine sense of caring. It was comforting and reassuring. Two months later, my wife was at St. Joe's for a second attempt to remove some very large kidney stones. This procedure was also unsuccessful resulting in her being admitted into the short-stay facility and a nephrostomy tube being inserted into her kidney, which required her to stay an additional two days in the hospital. Alyssa was assigned to her bay. Again, Alyssa was very professional, knowledgeable, and attentive. Prior to discharge, Alyssa walked us through the process of caring for the nephrostomy tube, changing the dressings, and what indicators to look for if something was amiss. She was very patient in answering our questions and even repeating things as necessary. Two weeks later, my wife was back in the short-stay facility. This time due to surgery that removed a parathyroid and half of her thyroid. The surgeon had her stay overnight in order to run some tests in the morning. Alyssa was on duty but not assigned to my wife. Regardless, she popped into my wife's bay with the same amicable yet professional demeanor just to check in and see how she was doing and if there was anything my wife needed. This personal touch helped ease our anxieties and dispel our apprehensions. Having had the unique opportunity to be physically present in the short-stay facility, either as a patient or sitting with my wife, I was able to observe that Alyssa seemed to develop the same rapport with her other patients as she assisted them through the corridors. In my opinion, this is due to her empathic, compassionate nature and her dedication to her profession. Alyssa's heart is unwavering in kindness. Each patient she cares for she gives her very best. She is thorough, ensures her patients feel that their needs are being met, and spends as much time as needed to make them feel heard and comfortable. Thank you, Alyssa!