I will start by saying that we have too many great things to say about Cassidy Elliott and not enough space to write it all. My 47 year old husband was Care Flighted to MVH with 70% body surface 3rd degree burns. My husband is still in the Burn ICU with one surgery to go. Our journey with Cassidy started on day 1. She followed him from the emergency room up to the Burn ICU and navigated a room full of family and physicians discussing minute by minute changes like a champ. In fact, she worked an extra 4 hours to help get my husband stabilized enough for our 5 sons to see their dad and familiarize the care he needed for the next nurse coming on board. He had every piece of equipment the burn unit used in his room. My husband was unrecognizable and Cassidy prepared us for this in a soft and caring way. She emphasized the importance of family and even prayed with us at bedside. She is a huge reason why my husband is with us today. She advocated and answered all of our concerns. She helped us with parking passes, sleeping arrangements, medical jargon, and debriefed us on any slight hiccup or improvement in my husband’s status. He was extubated 13 days after admission. On day 15, Cassidy was my husband’s nurse and noticed an irregular breathing pattern with him. She called the doctor to come and evaluate him. They pulled out an airway obstruction, the size of a mouse., secondary to the burn injury that scabbed off and was stuck in the back of his throat. Without her quick actions, this could have resulted in a collapsed lung or much worse. Cassidy has great bedside instincts and manners. She had a way of making everyone feel at ease. That's special when you are working with burn patients that can never get their pain levels to a perfect 1 out of 10.
Cassidy recently switched over to help night shift. My husband had a large surgery in the late afternoon and Cassidy recovered him on the night shift. His BP was hypotensive. I was anxious about this, but Cassidy put my mind at ease. She pulled in a chair and sat bedside until his volume of fluids and blood was complete. She always goes above and beyond for not just him but our entire family. Miami valley Hospital is lucky to have such a caring and intelligent Burn unit nurse. My husband and I have 5 sons and I feel like we gained a daughter here with Cassidy by our side.