Connie was seeing a patient in the inpatient rehab unit for diabetes education. The patient had a history of cancer and it had returned causing much pain and weakness. His new diagnosis of diabetes seemed, at times, to be the least of his problems. But Connie visited him and his wife each day and developed a relationship with them fostering encouragement and support. Her gentle persistence to help the patient and his wife manage his diabetes turned into a relationship of respectful compassion. I watched as Connie gave the patient a hug as he was wheeled down to CT. I also watched as she cried in her office the day the patient and wife told her he had decided to go home on Hospice.

Connie always exemplifies the core values of NGHS. She has built relationships with the unit nurses and the physicians in her efforts to ensure evidence based care to the diabetic patients (passion for excellence). The nurses often call her for advice on managing their diabetic patients and she often collaborates with the nurses and physicians to decide on the best diabetic regimen for the patients (deep interdependence). The example she sets as a caring and responsible nurse will help develop and lead great nurses in the future (responsible stewardship.