I wanted to take a minute and share with you how impressed I have been with one of your travel nurses who works for me. Christine Sawtelle has really gone above and beyond during her time here with us at our facility in Maine. We are a little critical access hospital that doesn’t have a lot of resources but has a strong community connection and a very dedicated staff. Christine has fit right in. She has stepped up and served as a relief charge RN on nights and been a leader on the unit, but that is not the only reason I felt compelled to write to you.

We had a patient that had been with us for 2 years as we searched for placement. She was not always the easiest patient to care for or get to know or establish a trusting relationship with. She had a traumatic brain injury as a younger woman and had some challenging behaviors that at times made care challenging. Christine worked hard to gain the patient's trust and really did establish a bond with her and was her advocate on nights. Christine often took time to engage her in activities, got to know her likes and dislikes, and spent time with her and assisting with ADL care such as getting her to shower.

Our care management and social work team worked for 2 years to try to find an appropriate placement for this woman and finally found her a place in NH, which is 2 hours away and was going to be a big transition for this patient. Christine and one of my day charge nurses very thoughtfully and collaboratively spent the two weeks leading up to this transition engaging with her and helping her to accept the change that was coming. Then they helped her pack her belongings and they drove her to NH to her new home and helped her get settled. I am not sure without Christine and the other nurse's dedication to the patient that the transition would have gone as smoothly.