I was in the hospital for a small bowel obstruction, perforated appendix, and other complications. I spent one month in the hospital, and Kyle was my nurse several times. I felt a connection with him immediately and was always so happy to see him. His bedside manner was amazing; he was warm, thoughtful, attentive, and compassionate.

We’re both mountain bikers. We would talk about riding and bikes, and I got to take my mind off of things for a while. The first night Kyle was my nurse, he spent a good amount of time in my room de-tangling my IV pole. I had been in the hospital for a few days and, by this time, had four or five IVs going. It looked like a big mess of spaghetti hanging down from the pole. He patiently untangled and rerouted all the cords and tubes and scrubbed and capped all of the unused hubs. He helped me organize my bedside table and moved a garbage can closer to my bed. Little things, but they had a big impact on me. I guess having everything nicely organized around me helped me feel less overwhelmed with my whole situation.

I liked the fact that not only was his extra effort making my life better and keeping me safe, but it also made things easier for the other nurses. Later, his attention to detail would save my life. About two weeks into my stay, I started hemorrhaging badly. I had surgery about a week prior to correct the SBO and appendicitis. I had been recovering nicely up until this point. Kyle was my nurse the night it happened. I lost almost 2 liters of blood in a short amount of time (later in surgery, they irrigated another 1.5 liters from my intestines). If Kyle had not been paying close attention or acted quickly and decisively, I almost certainly would not be here today. I owe my life to the amazing team at Barton, and Kyle certainly stands out among that wonderful team.