I was a patient at Marshfield Medical Center in Pediatrics for just under 3 weeks. I was admitted in December of last year and while I received amazing care from every single one of my nurses and doctors, one nurse stuck out to me. I was admitted for having very high blood pressure but later through my stay, we found out I had a super rare tumor by my kidney. This is called a paraganglioma which is found in about 2 in a million. As I‘m sure you can understand this time for me was very frustrating and a very uncertain time for me. Like every teenager, I had a lot of questions and overall, I was scared. It is never an easy feeling knowing that there are so many unknowns with what you have. Karissa helped me work through all of my thoughts and fears. She really took the time to answer all of my questions to the best of her ability. Karissa went out of her way the day before my surgery just to see me, because she knew it was going to be my first and I was feeling very uneasy about it. Again, she helped me work through my fears and by the next day, I was going into surgery confident. Karissa not only helped me medically but also mentally and emotionally. I feel as though I walked out of Marshfield Medical Center with not only great care but with a great friend along with a mentor!