In February, I was medevac by helicopter from Yuma Regional Medical Center to Chandler Regional Medical Center with a growing infection in my hand which YRMC led me to believe I might need an amputation but at a minimum immediate surgical intervention. I was admitted to pre-op overflow and kept waiting for 26 hours for a surgery that never happened. During that time and the following 24 hours, I never heard a word or met anyone from my surgical team. Two charge nurses attempted to get in contact with my surgical team so that some of my questions and fears could be addressed, but they could not contact the team. After 2 days in pre-op overflow, I was transferred to med-surg and was introduced to Karen, the floor charge nurse. When Karen heard what I’d been through she sprang into action. She was shocked that I hadn’t been contacted by my surgeon and sought to rectify this. Undaunted by people who said they couldn’t help, she was tenacious in her efforts, and within 90 minutes she had my surgeon on the phone by his personal cell and got all my questions answered. She took pictures of my growing infection and got them directly to my surgeon. She followed up with YRMC and got confirmation that the infection was MRSA and passed that information to the infectious disease doctor and the surgeon. From the moment she took over my care, she helped me in every way imaginable and turned what had been a nightmare into an experience that I felt informed and far more in control of. I have been under the care of dozens of medical professionals over my career in naval aviation and a second career in transportation after that, and in all that time I never felt a level of dedication from hospital staff as I did from Karen. I sincerely hope this story of compassionate care will give her the recognition she deserves.