Crystal J. Poggio
August 2024
Crystal J.
Poggio
,
BSN, RN, CCRN
SICU
Mayo Clinic in Florida
Jacksonville
,
FL
United States
She turned down the lights, turned on easy-listening music, grabbed a tube of moisturizer, and began to massage the parts that were not covered up with machines, IVs, or bandages. When she was done, my husband was very calm and content.
My husband had a Double Lung Transplant in June. Crystal was our day shift nurse for the first three days. As you can imagine after the transplant, he required so much care. My husband was her only patient, which is exactly what needs to happen. Crystal never stopped moving for 12 solid hours... she never stopped caring for my husband. The day we had to share her with another patient, she was still amazing. Crystal is very intelligent and she knows her job and is wonderful at anticipating his every need! If something went right, she fixed it, and if she couldn't...she figured out how.
Crystal is so kind and compassionate. She understood that we were all at the most vulnerable time in our lives, and she treated our family like we were her family. She explained everything she was doing for my husband, she explained every medication that she administered, and she answered ALL our questions. Crystal listened to us as well. She was open to the fact that I knew more about my husband than she did, and she involved us in his care so that we knew and felt comfortable helping to take care of him. On two occasions during an in-room Bronchoscopy, Crystal advocated for my husband when his vitals changed, and she knew he needed attention. I know that's what she is supposed to do, but she voiced her concerns when they were needed, even when others in the room were not easy to work with. I admired how she respectfully stood her ground with the other providers.
On our third day in ICU, we had to move rooms due to a maintenance issue. After we were settled in the new room, my husband was very anxious and emotional, and so were we. We were all tired, and the room was tense. I was trying to decide what to do for my husband to help him when Crystal came back into the room with some meds and asked what was wrong. I told her he was very anxious and agitated. She said ok, let's stop a minute and take a deep breath. She knew the meds and the weight of his care had taken a toll on all of us. She turned down the lights, turned on easy-listening music, grabbed a tube of moisturizer, and began to massage the parts that were not covered up with machines, IVs, or bandages. When she was done, my husband was very calm and content. The anxiety and agitation were gone, and the entire mood of the room changed. We were all calm and less anxious. She called it the Crystal Treatment...I called it a gift.
Crystal did this and so much more for our family in those three days. She went above and beyond for her patient and for our family. Her level of care, kindness and compassion impacted us and left a lasting love and admiration for Crystal. We will never forget her and anyone that is lucky enough to have her care for them will be blessed beyond measure!
Crystal is so kind and compassionate. She understood that we were all at the most vulnerable time in our lives, and she treated our family like we were her family. She explained everything she was doing for my husband, she explained every medication that she administered, and she answered ALL our questions. Crystal listened to us as well. She was open to the fact that I knew more about my husband than she did, and she involved us in his care so that we knew and felt comfortable helping to take care of him. On two occasions during an in-room Bronchoscopy, Crystal advocated for my husband when his vitals changed, and she knew he needed attention. I know that's what she is supposed to do, but she voiced her concerns when they were needed, even when others in the room were not easy to work with. I admired how she respectfully stood her ground with the other providers.
On our third day in ICU, we had to move rooms due to a maintenance issue. After we were settled in the new room, my husband was very anxious and emotional, and so were we. We were all tired, and the room was tense. I was trying to decide what to do for my husband to help him when Crystal came back into the room with some meds and asked what was wrong. I told her he was very anxious and agitated. She said ok, let's stop a minute and take a deep breath. She knew the meds and the weight of his care had taken a toll on all of us. She turned down the lights, turned on easy-listening music, grabbed a tube of moisturizer, and began to massage the parts that were not covered up with machines, IVs, or bandages. When she was done, my husband was very calm and content. The anxiety and agitation were gone, and the entire mood of the room changed. We were all calm and less anxious. She called it the Crystal Treatment...I called it a gift.
Crystal did this and so much more for our family in those three days. She went above and beyond for her patient and for our family. Her level of care, kindness and compassion impacted us and left a lasting love and admiration for Crystal. We will never forget her and anyone that is lucky enough to have her care for them will be blessed beyond measure!