It is impossible to summarize in a few words what kind of nurse Katie Sewell is and what her skillful care and compassion meant to me and my family during my recent hospitalization.
From the 1st day of my hospitalization, everyone was kind and helpful, but Katie stood out. I felt I was in very competent hands and for each step of the way she was thorough, informative, kind and very compassionate. She took the time to connect with both me and my mother, to help alleviate our fears of what was ahead. Being sick and not knowing exactly what is wrong can be scary, even to those of us in health care.
Katie's compassion showed through in her ability to settle my nerves down by distracting me with small talk during the worst of my nausea and vomiting, her ability to be sympathetically aware of my distress and to have a sincere desire to alleviate it. It was in her taking the time to discuss my tests and procedures and answering questions as if they were the most important thing she had to do that day. It was the way she took seconds to discuss things other than my illness to solidify the bond between her and myself. It was if she connected with me on a more personal level and made my concerns hers. She would follow up on requests or questions that we forgot to ask the doctor and came back with information so that we could be more informed; you could tell she was being an active listener, no question was left unanswered if she didn't know, she had the subject matter expert speak to us. It was how she protected my health information form others, and just used a positive voice and body language to put me at ease. It was her sitting down, taking my hand and looking me in the eye as she spoke to me. It was in the way she made sure my pain was controlled and after the 1st day learned when and what made me more nauseated and worked with me to ensure I had nausea medication before I ate.
Katie is a true compassionate patient advocate and a true DAISY Nurse.