There was a patient who was experiencing immense levels of agitation toward the end of life and, at one point, had to be put in restraints. This patient had a brain injury and struggled to communicate directly. During the several days that Cheri had him, she was able to form a strong relationship, advocated for changes in medication, and was able to get the patient out of the restraints and resting comfortably until he passed. She took the time she didn’t necessarily have to connect with this patient, empathize with his situation, and advocate to do the right thing and ensure that he was comfortable and could pass with dignity. She is always a strong partner not only with our patients but also with our treatment teams and her nursing peers.

The other example that comes to mind occurred more recently. Another patient on T9 was declining, and the family was extremely hesitant to initiate the hospice process. There were complex family dynamics, disagreements about who had power of attorney, and a lot of misconceptions about hospice and what hospice care means. Cheri, again, formed a strong connection with the patient because of her empathetic nature and advocated for him to the family as his quality of life was dwindling and unlikely to ever recover. The patient struggled to express his wishes to his family so Cheri made time to sit with the patient’s family and explain in detail the process of inpatient hospice, symptom management, and broke down many of the misconceptions that the family had in regard to hospice. She advocated for a family meeting between the family, Care Management, and the hospice liaison and attending to address the families concerns as well. As a nurse, she was not required to engage in these conversations or advocate as strongly as she did for this patient, but she did because it was the right thing to do to make sure this patient’s wishes were being honored.

Cheri is one of the most empathetic and dedicated nurses I have ever had the opportunity to work with during my two years at Intermountain Health. She has a particularly inspiring passion for the hospice patients we provide care for on T9 at Intermountain Medical Center. She believes strongly that all patients have the right to a peaceful and comfortable end of life and will work tirelessly to ensure their needs are met. She strongly advocates for multi-disciplinary meetings with our complex hospice patients because she believes that collaboration yields better outcomes for our patients and their families. I stated before that she is one of the most passionate and empathetic nurses I have ever worked with. A more accurate statement would be that she is one of the most outstanding individuals I have ever known in my lifetime, and she is an exemplary example of excellence at Intermountain Medical Center.