My husband, L, was admitted to Rideout Hospital through the ER on February 15 due to internal bleeding. Upon our arrival to our assigned room on the 3rd floor, we were met by Janelle. She was smiling, even thought it was the middle of the night, kind, caring, compassionate, and attended to our every need. She explained every procedure to us and treated us like we were her only patient on the floor which of course we were not. She not only cared for my husband but she also took care of my needs. She got to know us as individuals and not a job or number. She made us feel right at home as much as it could be under the circumstances.
Our circumstance are a bit on the rare side as I have Leukemia and we were new to the area and my husband is a veteran and has had two strokes and has memory and vision issues and is battling cancer. We have no children and both spent many months in hospitals over the years and have had the best of care so it is hard not to compare. Due to his memory issues, I explained to Janelle that if I leave his room, my husband will get up and rip out everything and come looking for me as this has happened in the past so I am going to have to stay with him as he is afraid of losing me and being left behind. She was very compassionate and made sure I had everything I needed to stay with him and was comfortable as I could be.
Janelle checked on us throughout the night and even used a flashlight when she needed to check things instead of turning on those bright lights. I hadn't gotten any rest for almost three days and she tried her best to give us some peaceful rest while tending to patient needs at the same time. Then when her shift was ending she introduced us to Jynaia who would be taking over as our nurse for the day. Janelle came back to see us one more time and asked if we needed anything at all before she left. Janelle also told me not to worry and just try to rest, that if anything didn't get done that she would be back that evening and would take care of whatever we needed. She truly put me at ease. Janelle just exemplified a true caring nurse.
When Jynaia came in to assess my husband, she brought us both a warm wash cloth and coffee to start our morning off and asked us how we were and if we needed anything. She also made sure I had something to eat along with my husband. Jynaia also took care of me as well as looking after her patient. All my husband and I could do was talk about how lucky can two people get to have two such great and wonderful nurses in a row. Jynaia also brought us items so we could have a shower and worked it out so we could have privacy to get cleaned up. She also had so much compassion and kindness and was genuine in treating us like people and not a number or a job. She was also great at explaining everything and asked if we had any questions to please ask.
These two nurses were a team and both very special in so many ways. They are outstanding role models for nursing care and exemplify kindness and caring in a way that should be recognized in some way. Janelle and Jynaia went above and beyond the call of duty and gave us the feeling that they were there for us. We felt comforted and safe. They are an asset to the hospital and seem to truly enjoy what they do.