April Max has been one of several nurses we have had during E’s inpatient stays. Though all of them have been great, her focus and professionalism makes her stand out. April has been our nurse on several occasions throughout our St. Jude stays. I know when she is assigned to us, E will be getting the absolute best care and not even the tiniest detail will be overlooked.

An example of how she tailors her care to the individual patient she is treating is how she prepares for E’s dressing changes. First, E has extremely sensitive skin so instead of the standard Chloraprep and large clear bandage used for most kids, she must have betadine and hypafix to clean and affix her dressing. Almost every other nurse we have had, I have to remind them when they come into the room to perform the change. April remembers this little detail and comes into the room with all the appropriate materials without ever being reminded. Second, she knows how stressful the changes are for E so she streamlines the process. She gathers all the needed supplies, coordinates with other nurses to join her to help hold E, and always tells me what time she is planning on working on the dressing so I will be prepared when it happens. Because she plans ahead and prepares so well, E’s dressing changes go smoothly and quickly even with Emily fighting it every step of the way.

Having someone who plans ahead and pays such close attention to detail shows how much St. Jude cares about their patients.