Elena'scontributions to 8L patients and staff over the past several years are truly immeasurable. As the unit scheduler, unit council co-chair, CAUTI Champion, and Charge RN she exhibits an incredible combination of leadership, caring, and teamwork. Perhaps what makes Elena so special, however, is not how active she is in the unit culture but rather how devoted, kind, friendly, and effective she is in each of her roles. 

As a Charge RN, she is so calm, advocates for patient safety, speaks to every family member and patient with respect, and regularly listens to nurses and aides to ensure we can all have the best day possible. I have personally witnessed Elena discuss how nurses and PCAs can work together to improve patient care during these very challenging times. That interaction has led to a developing project within the unit council. Her ability to build trust, listen, and implement changes makes a difference in the ability of staff to deliver timely, quality care to patients. As CAUTI Champion, Elena developed a Foley tracking tool that resulted in a clear reduction in the number of Foley days and CAUTI events on our unit. As unit scheduler, Elena has selflessly taken on more hours of work on top of her other roles and undoubtedly handles so many of our emails and schedule requests with an air of calmness few of us could replicate! This role also speaks to her ability to build and maintain successful working relationships. 

Finally, I have been so impressed with Elena's leadership as Unit Council Co-Chair. She took on this role a little more than a year ago, collaborated with me to develop a plan and goals for the future, and has been the absolute best partner I could ask for! Together, we developed a project tracking tool to help staff organize unit-based improvement projects, have tackled quality improvement goals, planned connective experiences for staff, and have navigated organizing Zoom meetings. Recently, she helped organize efforts to collect money from floor staff to recognize the impact both leadership and PCA staff have made on the nursing staff and our patients. These efforts were so successful, and the look on each staff member's face being individually recognized for their work has been truly moving! Elena is a leader on our unit council, directly empowering staff and encouraging participation by reaching out when she sees innovative ideas, always listens to members during meetings without dismissing ideas or efforts, and has a genuinely awesome understanding of how we can combine staff's strengths with the right interventions to bring improvement to the patient experience. 

I have learned so much from Elena's leadership, caring personality, and lightheartedness. She makes us laugh, she makes us feel heard, and we trust her with our thoughts, feelings, and ideas. Elena is one of those rare nurses who can adapt to almost any role and perform it with kindness and integrity! We are so lucky to have this truly extraordinary human in our family! Thank you so much, Elena!