I am very grateful for Catherine “Katie” Bochenek for taking care of my mother. Katie has such compassion as a nurse. She treated my mom like she was a member of her own family. Katie was so tuned in and focused on my mother’s care. She was vigilant about gathering information about my mom to further assess what was going on with her health. Mom had already been hospitalized for 4 days and was having serious blood pressure issues and was in a great deal of pain. Katie did so much to distract my mom from her pain. She had her smiling and laughing. Katie was very informative with me, keeping me in the loop with every test result and order placed. While under Katie’s care, she had to call a CAT call on my mom. She took charge. I was so impressed with how she handled the stress of the situation. She was amazing. Not only does she exemplify incredible nursing skills, but she is also one of the sweetest, most kind-hearted, caring nurses I have met. Her positive energy is infectious. She got us through a scary moment and took the time to make sure I was ok, too.

After Katie’s shift was over, she came into my mother’s room and sat and chatted with us. She wasn’t on the clock anymore, but she stayed to chat and wanted to let us know if we needed anything or had any questions to please reach out to her. She handed me her phone number. Katie went out of her way for my mom and our family. She is so genuine. It felt like another member of the family was taking care of her.

Katie is an inspiration, so deserving of the DAISY Award for her love and commitment to her patients. Katie is the type of nurse that every nurse should aspire to be.