For several days, Emma took on one of the hardest nursing assignments for any nurse. Her patient was admitted after delivering her baby very early. She, very understandably, wanted to spend as much time with her baby in the NICU as possible. Emma not only encouraged her to be there with her infant, but also actively worked to ensure the patient returned to the unit as little as possible. She brought her medications to her, performed bedside assessments in the NICU, provided teaching, and helped the family complete necessary paperwork, all in the NICU. When the patient's medications weren't ordered in a way that would allow for the best pain control possible while dealing with such a tough situation, Emma tirelessly advocated for her patient to have the right medications ordered at the right frequency so the last thing the patient needed to think about was her post-surgical pain control. When things took a turn for the family, and it was evident their baby would not make it, Emma was so empathetic, compassionate, and kind that some of her fellow nurses were moved to tears. She ensured the patient had everything she could possibly need taken care of, so she could be with her baby until the end. She ensured a cuddle cot was available for the bereaved family to spend time with their infant; she reached out and used unit resources to provide the family with lasting keepsakes; she went above and beyond to help find answers to the family's questions, no matter how unique or obscure. Emma did all of this while still providing amazing care to a full nursing assignment of other patients. Emma is and has always been an amazing nurse and wonderful resource to both patients and her coworkers, but on this particular weekend, Emma felt so much empathy and displayed so much compassion for her patients that it would absolutely be a disservice to her and all nurses to not acknowledge her actions.

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Emma was my day shift nurse who took care of me for several days while I was on the postpartum unit. Emma was so kind and gentle, and she made me feel like she cared about everything related to my care. When I was visiting my baby in the NICU, she made sure my pain management was adequately treated. My baby unfortunately died, and Emma set up the cuddle cot for me and the baby to be able to spend more time together. Emma looked at my baby like he was just a regular baby in a bassinet. Emma is extremely empathetic, and I can tell she was meant to be a nurse. Aside from making sure we were comfortable, she somehow answered every call light at lightning speed. She was the day-shift superwoman who put her whole heart into caring for her patients.