Kalianna was an excellent nurse for my daughter for many reasons. She cared for her for 3 days in a row and was amazing all 3 days. Her clinical expertise showed when she gave direct and accurate information on our daughter during rounds. The attending told me she was part of a group that redesigned the way information was presented during rounds. When a decision was unclear during rounding she would speak up and say, "Okay, so to clarify..." Kalianna very much was an advocate for her and myself.
My daughter was experiencing some withdrawal symptoms. Kalianna wasn't back the next day so she told me before leaving her shift, "Remember the clonidine patch, keep that in the back of your head if she still seems to be withdrawing." She was very encouraging. I completed a lot of education the days Kalianna cared for us, (medications, NG tube, CPR). During all of this teaching she would say, "Great job," or "You can do this," or "You got this." She also encouraged me to take care of myself.
When I would sit in the chair to hold our daughter Kalianna would say, "Do you want your water next to you?" "Make sure you're drinking water,"; she would say in a very caring manner. She would make sure I had ordered/eaten lunch. This meant a lot to me. As a mother of 4, I'm constantly neglecting what I need to care for my children. It impressed me very much that Kalianna doesn't have children of her own but truly seemed to understand what moms need in order to be cared for. That is so important because if a mom doesn't take care of herself, she can't take care of her children.
It seemed to me that Kalianna was well-liked by her peers. She offered help to other nurses when it was needed, and I would even see her asking her neighbors what they needed help with when they appeared busy. She kept a positive, bright attitude all 3 days she was with us.
Kalianna was very loving with our daughter, talking to her in a sweet voice and acknowledging when she was in pain or not feeling well. I felt she really listened to my concerns and when she couldn't help, would escalate to the team quickly. For example, our daughter was experiencing withdrawal symptoms, she explained the symptoms to our team, and they wrote a PRN rescue dose for her that helped significantly.
I really can't say enough good things about Kalianna. If we could have had her as our nurse every day, I would have loved that. She truly has found her calling as she is such a wonderful nurse.