Our unit has the honor of working with Jessica Doty, she is a thoughtful and caring nurse that is concerned not only about the welfare of her patients but her co-workers as well. Jessica embodies the spirit of the DAISY Award.

Jessica fulfills the role of charge nurse on our unit and I know when she is in charge I can seek her out for assistance. Jessica was in a charge on a day when I had a patient that needed to get out of bed and into a chair. This seems like a routine task but this patient had refused with not only me but with all of the other nurses that had taken care of her. This patient had been admitted with weakness and was deconditioned. I had seen Jessica in action with her own patients and knew I could count on her. She motivates people with her enthusiasm. I loved watching her walk into the room with a big smile on her face as she announced to the patient "We are going to get up to the chair now; we will be here to help you. Don't worry we won't let you fall". My patient agreed to try and we got her up to a chair. This may seem like a minor accomplishment and a given for a nurse to be able to do during the course of a day however it is not that simple. The thing about Jessica is I want to be a better nurse after watching her inspire patients. She has what I would characterize as the "magic touch" that patients can't resist.

A nurse on our floor recently was diagnosed with MS. It was devastating news, the nurse was admitted to the 10th floor for an extended period of time and we all wondered what we could do to support her. Jessica stepped up and organized a gift card basket for the nurse's family to various restaurants, this alleviated the worry the nurse had about her children not having their mom at home to cook dinner. This same nurse was in charge of our annual charity project to adopt a family for Christmas and was worried about how everything would get done. Jessica quietly filled in behind the scenes and wrapped all of the donated gifts and made sure they were delivered on time. I talked to this nurse and she said Jessica came over to her house and wrapped all of the donated gifts as well as the nurse's gifts for her family. She said the experience was surreal, Jessica came in with her can do attitude and knocked the task out in no time. Jessica also slipped into the holes in the schedule that needed to be filled as a result of this nurse being off. This also may seem like no big deal but Jessica switched from day to night shift and worked extra holiday shifts.

Jessica is our Magnet champion for our floor. The work she does as part of this committee directly impacts each and every patient on our floor. She is infectious with her enthusiasm for making the hospital a better place to work and a better place for patients. She makes sure that everyone knows what is going on in and around the hospital and why our Magnet status is so significant.

I love reading all of the stories of the other nurses that have been honored with the DAISY award. It is clear that those who have been honored are first class nurses. That is how I feel about Jessica; she embodies the spirit of this award. No matter how busy she is or how stressful the day she maintains a positive attitude and quietly goes about her day inspiring those around her.