Amanda St. John, RN

Our Father was admitted after a fall. He had multiple issues: a broken neck, a broken nose, and an extreme gash above his eye. That was just the beginning; it turns out it all started due to septic shock, which then caused orthostatic hypotension and then a heart attack. The root cause was a toe that was infected. He has been in the hospital now for 3 weeks. His team consists of an intensivist, cardiologist, podiatry, disease, wound specialist, vascular, PT, and OT. As one doctor stated, “he has an impressive list.”

Amanda St. John was always compassionate, thorough, professional, and was a liaison for us in coordinating all of his needs and issues. She always asked how he was, whether he was in pain, and what she could do for him. She extended that care to us as well, as we stayed in the room with him every day for over 8 hours a day, so we saw firsthand the care she was giving. She was excellent at anticipating our needs by always knowing the plan and coordinating with each member of the team to ensure the whole picture was looked at with regard to the next step.

At one point, the cardiologist told us he was sorry, but it was over. Amanda never changed her course and continued with proactive measures, and he is alive and will likely go home. He will likely get the toe removed, but chances of survival are improving daily. Even when she was not assigned to our dad, she made a point of checking in and shared his history with whoever was assigned to him. She explained procedures and what some of the terminology meant as well. After seeing him in bed for over two weeks, the PT had him walk; the look on Amanda’s face and tears in her eyes showed me how dedicated she was to her profession. Amanda not only made a difference in our father’s life, but ours as well. And I have no doubt she will continue to make the world a better place.