There have been numerous occasions when I have witnessed Jacky go above and beyond to help patients and coworkers, but one day recently really left an impression on me. We were working together in triage, and this patient was a homeless veteran who was already deemed stable and was up to be discharged. He was being a bit challenging for all of the staff and was refusing to leave. Staff had offered resources via social work and options for shelters; however, the patient was not accepting any of them. Jacky overheard these conversations and took the time to sit down with the patient and figure out what his exact barriers were for accepting these resources. She learned that he did not have a phone and did not understand how to contact these places. She shared with him that she herself is a veteran and guided him through how she used resources from the VA in the past. She took the time to call the VA herself (on a very busy day in triage) and set up transportation with the VA to come pick him up from our ED and a case worker to guide him through the steps he needed to get back on his feet. He turned out to be kind and grateful to the staff and appreciated what she did for him.

It was emotional hearing her story of her journey from the military to her getting her education and becoming an RN and now seeing her pay it forward.

She is one of the best nurses I have worked with in this department and seeing the way she treats patients… She definitely deserves recognition.