Nurse Flo was my Dad's nurse. She is compassionate and caring. She answered questions and made sure she understood exactly what we were asking. She was honest and gave helpful input. I was most taken by her actions with my Dad specifically. She LISTENED to him and did her very best to get him what he needed. For example, he had an IV in his arm, right at the bend and it was becoming uncomfortable. It was a perfectly working IV, however, it was not comfortable for my Dad. She changed the dressing around it and offered to look at his other arm to insert a new IV in a different location. She was also training a new nurse on the unit. They worked together and she specifically told him to listen to your patient and hear what he is saying. They both examined his arm and I recall them saying they could see a vein. As Flo was training, she said “I can see the vein, but can’t feel the vein” and she did not want to make him more uncomfortable by poking him again unnecessarily. She cared about the little things and the details. She listened to him and what he needed and she listened to me and my concerns.

I am so grateful she was my Dad’s nurse those two days. She kept us informed, asked questions, offered suggestions, and was very personable with us as well, talking about books and travel, putting us at ease during a very stressful time. This is not my first experience with nurses at the VA in Minneapolis. I’ve not had a complaint about nurses in the past, I feel my Dad has received great nursing care from various departments at the medical center as well as hospital inpatient units. This experience with Nurse Flo, however, was extraordinary.