In my 58 years, I have been a member of Boston Children’s Floating Hospital, Hunt Hospital, Worcester Memorial, UC San Francisco, and now RI Hospital since August of 2005. Although I have been blessed with many wonderful nurses, social workers, administrators, and doctors, I have never truly encountered anyone like Nurse Cheryl Linsky at the RI Hemophilia Clinic. Having been born in 1965 to parents with no family history of hemophilia, I was raised very cautiously. As part of the "home infusion program" we always had Factor VIII on hand, but my parents were never confident enough to infuse me and I never mastered self-infusion either. As an adult, I have always made it a point to establish a good relationship with my Hemophilia Clinic because I wasn't self-reliant, and I was having more and more spontaneous knee bleed issues. By the time Cheryl Linsky came to be my nurse at the clinic, I had physically transformed into a disabled, arthritis ravaged and OCD-riddled "bubble-boy" who was coming to the clinic weekly for an infusion of ELOCTATE "long-acting" factor from several fantastic clinic nurses that had come and gone at that point. From my very first encounter with Nurse Cheryl Linsky, I quickly began to see how much it means to be in her care. Far and beyond her nursing expertise (and her humor, and her energy, and her masterful multitasking, etc.), it is her wonderful ability to listen and "hear" what I was saying or concerned about through my usual smiling facade.

It would be impossible for me to select just one example of how Cheryl Linsky's impact on my day-to-day existence, both physical and mental. They range from the fairly mundane- like getting me to wear a medical necklace again (for the first time since I was a teenager) by merely explaining (as only Cheryl can) why a medical ID card buried in my wallet is going to be the last place an EMT is looking in an emergency. That hit home and scared me straight...since then, I not only wear my ID chain, but Cheryl has seen to it to ensure any med updates are on it.

When my doctor first shared with me about an even longer acting med I was intrigued, but my usual reticent self. Well Cheryl Linsky understood how resistant I am to change (especially if I think something is working for me) and she slowly began to introduce into conversations about the many success stories our clinic patients were already having on the new med - including my own hemophiliac nephew's improvements. As I became more interested in the transition my fear was that I was not going to be able to inject myself, but I also would not be compliant with how it was supposed to be used and ultimately over infuse. Once sharing those fears with Cheryl, she reassured me that she would still be able to continue my home infusions but now only weekly with the Hemlibra.

Then there is the calming and supportive impact Cheryl Linsky makes when I have left my protective "bubble" of home and ventured out to my sibling's Beach house the past few Julys. Two summers ago, I fell not once but twice while on the week vacation, and twice I called Cheryl Linsky scared, freaked out and crying in fear I had hurt not only my bad knee but all the other parts that got bruised up. Cheryl calmed down, asked me specifics on each fall, what hurt and re-explained how she was confident I was covered from my weekly Hemlibra dose, but understanding how I was and what was best for my physical and mental well-being, she recommended I infuse so I could be certain all the aches I was feeling from the falls were not the start of a bleed.

Those are just a few examples of the kind of nurse Cheryl Linsky is - she is an ally, a confidant, and someone who feels like family to this grateful patient. Those are just a few examples of the kind of the kind of person Cheryl Linsky is.