Lauren has been a dedicated Tower 5 family member for many years. Her clinical skills are beyond reproach, but what separates Lauren is the compassionate way she has with all our patients and coworkers. Her caring approach has fostered multiple nominations:
"Lauren will help all nurses and PCAs with anything they need. She is a tireless advocate for her patients and coworkers, and is always pleasant and well mannered."
"Lauren is a hardworking, dedicated, true team player. She goes above and beyond for our patients and coworkers. She is selfless and giving, and you can count on her for a helping hand, a laugh, or a smile, a switch, a meal, or anything you may need. For example, Lauren has helped me with lunch, switches, IVs, multiple patient boosts, turns, and baths just since I've returned from maternity leave. In fact, she is watching my baby for free today, and traveled one hour in a torrential downpour in the dark this morning, so my husband and I could get to work on time."
The commitment Lauren has to her coworkers is touching. Countless times she has shared her lunch with coworkers too busy to get something to eat, or offered to take an extra patient when someone was swamped, and when the census surges, she steps up and is the first to offer to take more than the normal assignment. Through her actions, Lauren demonstrates true compassion for her peers, but what truly separates her, is the moments she shares with her patients.
Sitting in the hallway, with, not just near, a confused lady, talking with her, reading to her, just browsing a through a magazine, is just one example of how she has a nurturing relationship, a relationship that builds a bond where there was none, that calms a troubled mind with a caring smile, a warm presence that allows for healing. It is not just the confused patient that needs a healing touch though, and Lauren's caring is evident with all her patients. Whether she is braiding a patient's hair, or chatting while painting a patient's fingernails, or just being an attentive ear, Lauren lets her patients know that they are more than just patients. Lauren has a level of compassion that allows her patients to feel a sense of normalcy, a sense of regular life while struggling with illness, and most importantly, lets them feel human, in a place that can feel so far from human.
I remember seeing Lauren come out of a patient's room one day, her eyes were puffy, watery, and when I inquired if she was alright, she told me what happened. She went into her patient's room, an elderly man in his 80s, she got into a conversation, sat down, and talked to him for around 10 minutes. It wasn't anything deep, any profound conversation, but she took the time to just talk to him. As she got up to leave, he thanked her for talking to him. The patient explained that he lives alone, has for many years, and doesn't have any living family. Then he said no one had sat down and spoke to him for that long in over a decade. He had forgotten what it was like, and he really appreciated her taking the time.
Not only had she been there for that patient, made a difference for him, made him feel human, but also was touched by him. And isn't that what nursing is, what nursing is about, making a difference in someone's life, because that is what the patient needs, doing it, because you are a nurse, not because it is your job, but because you are a nurse. Lauren Hanly embodies being a nurse.