It is not often, if at all, that I am compelled enough to write any type of review for employees who have been hired and compensated for performing a job. However, during this stay, there was one such nurse who I, in my opinion, went above and beyond that hired duty to ensure my wife had the best experience possible.
A small back story, my daughter was delivered here in 2014, 3 weeks early due to my wife having complications related to high blood pressure. So to say my wife was nervous about how this pregnancy would go is an understatement. This pregnancy started out well, but then she was diagnosed with gestational diabetes. During this time, she was poked and prodded more times than she would have liked. Walking in on Friday to deliver, we joked how nice of a morning it was and how great this delivery process was going to be. To our surprise, based on how things went with our daughter, everything went as smooth as possible!
During the first morning following our son being delivered, the night nurse was tasked with trying to collect blood from my wife, who is terrified of needles and not the way anyone wants to be awakened. Despite her efforts, it was unsuccessful and had to ask another nurse for assistance (at no fault of either nurse let me add). With all the poking and prodding during this pregnancy from the gestational diabetes, her veins were difficult to collect from. A few tears were shed, and both nurses were very understanding and did their best to make the situation more bearable for my wife.
Fast forward to the afternoon when Jackie was assigned to us. Due to rising blood pressure, the doctors requested a full workup of blood and urine. Jackie brought the bad news to my wife and did everything she could to keep her calm and collected while she prepared for the procedures. Again, Jackie attempted to retrieve blood and after careful precision and care, she was successful (despite a few more tears from my wife). Now onto the urine collection, due to swelling, Jackie was unable to collect herself but was quick to stop and ask for help from another colleague. Success! Afterward, this nurse stuck around for a little longer just to make sure my wife was okay and if there was anything she could do to help. Our nurse also made it a point any time she walked past the room to stop in and make sure my wife was comfortable and if there was anything she could do or get her.
On top of all of this (this is the part that moved us most), our nurse found out that the following day was my wife's 30th birthday. Before the end of her shift, she came in one last time to check on both my son and my wife, and in an act of uttermost kindness, brought our son a cute little onesie and got my wife a gift card to Starbucks. Her response as she handed it to her was "I wasn't going to be able to leave you guys without giving you both something small to apologize for having to give you bad news and cause you more discomfort during your stay."
That small gesture of selflessness moved both my wife and me beyond words. This nurse not only did her job 100% but found a way to go above and beyond in an effort to make up for something she had no control over and was just a part of childbirth and doing her job.
Overall, the entire staff from start to finish was amazing, but this nurse, in particular, found a way that surpassed any and all expectations we had. I truly hope she can be recognized in front of her peers for her kind acts towards my wife and son and understands that what she does on a day to day basis really does make a difference, even to those who aren't the actual patient!