Carley at “baseline” is such an exceptional nurse and co-worker. She always goes the extra ten steps above and beyond. She is always more than happy to help and continuously show her patient both love and respect. Today we started off a busy shift and one of her patient’s family members requested a video chat. While setting it up, I was blessed to witness Carley showing such attentiveness to her patient. She reached down and held out her hand for him to hold. He reached out and she continued to hold his hand while she was performing her routine care. He would squeeze and release her hand to show appreciation and she would rub his hand with her thumb while holding it. You could visibly see a wave of calm settle over him, even while she suctioned his trach (which is not the most pleasant sensation for patients). He wanted to change his hand position and instead of letting his hand go, she repositioned herself to still be able to hold his hand and provide compassion.

Then, when the family hopped on the video chat, Carley enthusiastically engaged with her patient and his family and was able to get him to wave and communicate. Watching her patient get excited with a look of joy and relief on his family’s faces was so overwhelming that I had to compose myself. It was a blessing to witness this, and I am so thankful to have Carley on our team! Carley shows exemplary care and treats patients the way I hope to be treated in the future. We work in a unit where we see a lot of death, tragedy, and high acuity patients. I was beautifully reminded that everyone here could use a little extra love and attention, especially when we are the ones they see day in and day out. And the little things DO matter! Thank you, Carley, for being you.