Lisa Horan embodies all the qualities that make a good nurse, great. She is kind, compassionate, nurturing, empathetic, patient, and understanding. She genuinely cares about our unit, our staff, and most importantly the care and treatment of our patients.
This past year we had an adolescent boy admitted for challenging behaviors including aggression and self-inflicted harm. He was autistic and lower functioning. He was only minimally verbal and needed help completing ADLs. He required 1:1 monitoring for his entire stay. When he was first admitted, many of our staff preferred not to take him, as his behaviors required constant attention to maintain his safety and safety of others.
Lisa immediately saw beyond the behaviors and recognized his strengths. In order to create the most welcoming and comforting environment for him, Lisa patiently took the time to learn what triggered the patient's maladaptive behaviors and what would soothe him. Knowing that individuals with autism need structure to thrive, Lisa helped to develop a routine for this patient to follow each day.
Even on days she was not assigned as his nurse, Lisa would spend one on one time with this patient, continuing to build a therapeutic rapport with him, which in turn helped him to acclimate more to the unit. Just as Lisa sets the tone for my day, she set the tone for this young man's day as well. When she walked into the unit in the morning this patient glowed and greeted her with the most genuine smile. Even with Lisa's special effect on this patient, there were still times he became agitated.
Many times, this included biting himself, banging his head on the wall, and sometimes hitting staff. While this was intimidating and frustrating to some, without hesitation Lisa calmly approached the patient and encouraged him to walk with her on the unit. I watched Lisa talk and walk with him and was in awe of how quickly his body language changed every time. He went from being tense and angry to smiling and giggling. You could see his shoulders and face relax. Because of Lisa's unrelenting compassionate care, within a week of admission, this young man went from the "challenging" patient to a fun, loving teenager that all of us learned to enjoy caring for.
Not only has Lisa gone above and beyond in this role, she has done it all with finesse and with a smile on her face.