D underwent a double lung transplant and was transferred to the CTICU after her surgery. I watched for approximately 5 hours while the post-surgery team kept a close eye on my wife’s condition, coming in and out of consciousness. Our nurse, Brent, was attentive, organized, compassionate, and (for lack of better words) on his game. He was patient with my presence in the room and it comforted me to see his diligence and attention to detail. He kept me at ease answering my questions and assured me that my wife was doing well, and explained the various tubes, IVs, and machines monitoring everything. During a moment when D opened her eyes, she looked terrified and panicked, but Brent managed to calm her down and assure her she was fine and talked to her calmly and compassionately. At shift change, he provided great notes to the oncoming nurse, and told me he would be off the next few days but could see my wife was a fighter and she would be out of CTICU by the time he returned and wished us well. Thank you, Brent, for your attentiveness and your cool-headedness during an intense period and for launching things in a positive direction to help start D’s recovery. 

I grew up in a hospital environment because my own mother was in and out of hospitals with various ailments. In all my time, I’ve never seen a group of nurses provide such tender care for anyone. The UCH nurse’s skill sets are extensive, and their professionalism and compassion for patients are beyond those I’ve ever witnessed. I am so grateful to know that beautiful people like you exist and that the calling for the RN profession still exists in the world today. 

“Thank you” doesn’t seem to cover all that they did, but we’re extremely grateful for having nurses like you in the world. Thank you, for who you are; all you do, and we are forever grateful for your service.