I landed in Maple Grove Hospital after visiting the Emergency Room for stomach pain that was determined to be pancreatitis caused by gallstones, necessitating the removal of my gallbladder. Kristie was my "dayside" nurse, from 7 am to 7 pm. She immediately set me at ease, despite it being the first time I was admitted to a hospital.

What made Kristie stand out to me was that as I got to know her over the 5 days I was a patient she told me this was actually her second career, walking away from a successful marketing career 5 years ago to enter the nursing field. The skill, compassion, and true heart she displayed at all times were more what you would find from a lifelong nurse, not someone with only 5 years of experience in the field. Any problem, she had a solution, and she stayed on top of every little detail, from putting in food orders for me because the room had an older phone system that was more challenging to use from the bed to sensing my pain levels almost better than I could, despite only knowing me for mere hours.

Finally, Kristie never lost her sense of humor, which, as someone who is constantly cracking jokes, I appreciated the fact that despite pain, surgery, and recovery we were able to share many jokes. In a profession that is having a hard time with retention, seeing the true professionalism Kristie brought to the room every single day was beyond comforting.