Sunday morning about 10:30 I phoned in to speak to R's RN for the day, who was Erin. In her report, it was clear that nothing had changed, that the meeting was set yet for Monday, in spite of some significant ECG and medication changes that began through the night. The entire experience of having R hospitalized here began to change so much for the better, as Erin could sense my concern, frustration, irritability with the several days without information, our confusion, little explanation. Erin asked me if I would be comfortable having Dr. S, the cardiac fellow, call me at home!

Erin demonstrated clinical expertise and excellence in clinical care: She was able to discuss with me the clinical status of R, the changes on the ECG, the effects of medication on R, and why the changes were of great concern. Compassionate care and reverence: I, an RN since 1976, many years in surgery, was getting upset, agitated, and voicing impatience in the phone call yet Erin could not have expressed more understanding and support for my state of frustration. She fully understood why I felt as I did, she was treating me with sincerity, she put herself in the situation had this been her family member, she was reverent toward our family's needs, and was placing our family member as the most important situation to her at that moment. Outstanding role model, with excellence and compassion in the nursing care of patients. She showed the compassion that is the best of what RNs have to offer, she knew exactly what she must do to alleviate this situation to calm the family, to contact the correct person to get complete information. Erin continued to display excellence, integrity, trustworthiness, compassion, and advocacy. She was trustworthy and an advocate for our family's need to have this confusion relieved, in that once I agreed to take his call, she informed me that she was texting the doctor at that minute.

We concluded our conversation and within 10 minutes Dr. S had called me, had patiently and thoroughly answered every one of my many questions, and laid out the progression of events that should occur over the next couple of days; he addressed the current response of R to the new medication that'd been started, why the initial plan of an immediate CABG had been abandoned and why. He could not have been more gracious and caring and in fact said that had he known our family was so distressed on Saturday evening, he would have called us then.

When visiting R later on Sunday, we met Erin in person, and she continued to care not only for R but us, so we were informed and had no other questions. With her attentiveness and sincerity, she answered all questions thoroughly and showed her sincere reverence for R and for family members by being the very best RN possible for our then-current situation. The family members were able to process this stressful situation so much more peacefully.

One other fact that weighed quite heavily in this entire episode is that R's younger 78-year-old brother was exactly 4 weeks post triple coronary artery bypass surgery on that very day that R underwent the cardiac angiogram.