Honesty, integrity, professionalism, strength and compassion, Marvlet Chambers is the essence of these words. She is what most people (not just nurses) should strive to be. Mrs. Chambers is a spark that has been shining here at Maimonides for almost 24 years. After all these years she still exhibits the same level of professionalism and enthusiasm that is usually seen in a newly hired nurse. Those of you who are fortunate enough to know Mrs. Chambers can concur.

I have had the extreme good fortune to work with Marvlet for the past 3 ½ years. She has given me much personal, as well as professional advice. The things that I have learned from her have made me a much stronger nurse today. Marvlet is a mentor to both novice and experienced nurses.

Mrs. Chambers has been our Team Leader in the dialysis unit for the past three years. She is not only our Team Leader, but she is also our number one team player. Marvlet is always ready and willing to assist in any way possible to make her co-workers and patient’s lives easier. She works collaboratively with doctors, other nurses, social workers, patients and their families to ensure that the best possible care is being given. If Marvlet is off and a problem arises or things are not going as smoothly as we would like in the unit, these words always ring out, “I bet if Marvlet was here this wouldn’t have happened”. She always finds a way to alleviate the problems or concerns of our unit.

Her dedication to this institution is beyond what I have ever witnessed. On several occasions, Marvlet has cancelled her vacation either because the Joint Commission was expected or the unit was short staffed. I can recall last year when we anticipated hurricane Irene, Marvlet could have been home with her family but instead she chose to stay almost 48 hours to ensure that the unit was functioning at it’s best and the patients were well taken care of. As our Team Leader, she is not expected to do patient care, but if a nurse is busy she always either initiates, monitors and/or terminates a treatment for a nurse. On occasions when we are short staffed, she takes a full patient load in order to alleviate the burden of her co-workers. She does all these things while still getting her assigned work completed.

Patients and family members alike adore and respect her. The most difficult patients adhere to what she says. I can recall once we had a patient who doctors and nurses were unable to convince to have his dialysis done. After a less than 10 minute conversation with this patient, Marvlet was able to convince him to come down to our unit and have his dialysis treatment done.

Like Ralph Waldo Emerson said “Do not go where the path may lead; go instead where there is no path and leave a trail”. Marvlet Chambers has definitely left a lasting impression in the minds and hearts of her patients, their families and her colleagues.