I have worked with Erin for many years as a bedside RN, however, last year she took a position as an RN Navigator for the Neuro team here at BUMCP. Erin has always been an "Above and Beyond" kind of nurse. Now that I work alongside her as a Navigator, I can see that she is an "Above and Beyond" human being! Erin spends a large portion of her time with patients in the Multiple Sclerosis population. These patients have an enormous amount of stress, healthcare coordination needs, medication management, and grief that they deal with on a daily basis. Oftentimes, Erin has had to spend countless hours unwinding just one situation for one patient, in an effort to get to the root of the issue.

I am recognizing her based on an interaction that I observed between Erin, her patient (over the phone), and a nursing student a few weeks ago. Erin had a new patient, a 29 y/o female with a new diagnosis of MS. The patient had been calling the clinic daily, sometimes multiple times per day. She had so many questions and was clearly terrified by her diagnosis. Many of the clinic staff members had already attempted to take the patient's calls and were getting frustrated and overwhelmed. Erin sat down at her desk, explained the situation to the student nurse that was shadowing her, and then made a call to the patient while on speaker phone so that the student could learn from the conversation. The conversation started with the patient very upset, crying, and pressured speech... just kind of a mess. Erin's vocal volume and tone remained quiet and calm, she listened to the patient for a long time, letting her talk about her frustrations and fears. Erin was patient, fully engaged, actively listening to the patient as we could hear the patient begin to settle down. Erin was able to explain the "why" behind some of the symptoms the patient was so frightened by, she was able to explain the medication treatment options once more in a way that did not sound belittling or demeaning, but in terms that were easy to understand. She even shared some of her personal struggles and fears as she shared with the patient a small part of her own journey when she was personally diagnosed with MS.

By the end of the call, the patient was completely calm. She was asking good questions, repeating back information that was given to her on the call. She even laughed a few times when it was appropriate. The patient was clearly able to trust Erin moving forward. She stated that "she felt heard and seen." But the best part of all, was watching the nursing student witness the entire interaction from beginning to end. She never once took her eyes off of Erin, she was in complete awe of how a small amount of therapeutic communication and "taking one's time" could completely change the way a person learned to cope with their diagnosis. She said that she learned more that day than she ever had and she was incredibly impacted by her observations.

This is how Erin operates EVERY DAY. And usually, no one hears her calls or interactions. She is a DAISY Nurse for her boundless contribution to making healthcare better.