Jacquelyn Perez is a Medical ICU nurse that joined our team in April of 2020. Jackie has shown herself to be a compassionate nurse with a desire to care for her patients. A recent example of Jackie’s caring nature was when her patient told her that it was his 20th wedding anniversary with his wife that shift. Unfortunately, this patient had been in and out of the hospital and was currently recovering in the Medical ICU. It was also mentioned to Jackie that the patient’s wife was in our UMC Cancer Center, with her own battle. She was due to come and visit her husband later in the shift, and Jackie’s patient was feeling down because he could not do anything special for his wife.

With that knowledge, Jackie was off planning something to help cheer up her patient. She as going to set up an anniversary date! Speaking with her patient, she found out that the couple's favorite treat was oatmeal raisin cookies from Insomnia Cookies, which she ordered with her own money. Jackie took it another step further and contacted Patient Experience to see if they could bring up flowers in a vase. They were also able to get a tablecloth and set up a special table at her patient’s bedside to surprise his wife when she arrived. Finally, Jackie brought an anniversary card and had all our staff here that day sign it with their well wishes. Emotional tears were shared by the couple as they celebrated themselves during this rough time in their lives.