Kathleen Long
March 2022
Kathleen
Long
,
RN
Neurosciences Institute
Ascension Saint Alexius Medical Center
Hoffman Estates
,
IL
United States
She spoke to the youth in me, and her understanding and kindness won me over. I can walk 80% better now, and I couldn't have done it without her!
Kathleen Long, RN, of our Neurosciences Institute, embodies many qualities essential to our profession. But one of her strengths stands out, making her other redoubtable skills all the more effective. And in our eyes, at least, that's worth a great big DAISY.
One of her patients suffered a knee injury back in 2019, and the persistence of its associated pain eventually reached level so acute, she could no longer work as an aerobics instructor. She sought the help of a pain specialist at our Neurosciences Institute, who prescribed a series of injections - but the patient was reluctant to comply. She cited a number of reasons for her resistance, but it seemingly boiled down to an unspecified wariness of an allergic reaction, and her fundamental skepticism that the injections would work.
Kathleen has been present during the patient's appointments, and had consistently supported the physician's recommendations. When the patient's initial misgivings grew to outright opposition, Kathleen stayed the course and continued to reinforce the specialist's advice and instructions, both in person and during follow-up conversations over the phone. A protracted stalemate set in, but Kathleen never wavered and continued to talk with the patient. Months and months went by, but Kathleen's unremitting support finally worked. In the patient's own words: " While my pain got worse, Kathleen kept on calling me. She was sure the injections would help. She told me she'd been injured when she was younger, and needles, doctors, and hospitals scared her. She spoke to the youth in me, and her understanding and kindness won me over. I can walk 80% better now, and I couldn't have done it without her!"
Kathleen's patience, empathy and perseverance played a big role in gaining the patient's cooperation - and those are skills we need and cultivate. But none of those skills would have tipped the scales unless Kathleen had won the patient's trust. Unlike those cultivated skills, TRUST is something that doesn't exist until it's earned and then given, one patient at a time - just like a DAISY Award. That may seem like a coincidence, but it isn't. We'd like to thank Kathleen for this reminder.
One of her patients suffered a knee injury back in 2019, and the persistence of its associated pain eventually reached level so acute, she could no longer work as an aerobics instructor. She sought the help of a pain specialist at our Neurosciences Institute, who prescribed a series of injections - but the patient was reluctant to comply. She cited a number of reasons for her resistance, but it seemingly boiled down to an unspecified wariness of an allergic reaction, and her fundamental skepticism that the injections would work.
Kathleen has been present during the patient's appointments, and had consistently supported the physician's recommendations. When the patient's initial misgivings grew to outright opposition, Kathleen stayed the course and continued to reinforce the specialist's advice and instructions, both in person and during follow-up conversations over the phone. A protracted stalemate set in, but Kathleen never wavered and continued to talk with the patient. Months and months went by, but Kathleen's unremitting support finally worked. In the patient's own words: " While my pain got worse, Kathleen kept on calling me. She was sure the injections would help. She told me she'd been injured when she was younger, and needles, doctors, and hospitals scared her. She spoke to the youth in me, and her understanding and kindness won me over. I can walk 80% better now, and I couldn't have done it without her!"
Kathleen's patience, empathy and perseverance played a big role in gaining the patient's cooperation - and those are skills we need and cultivate. But none of those skills would have tipped the scales unless Kathleen had won the patient's trust. Unlike those cultivated skills, TRUST is something that doesn't exist until it's earned and then given, one patient at a time - just like a DAISY Award. That may seem like a coincidence, but it isn't. We'd like to thank Kathleen for this reminder.