Max Villanueva
October 2025
Max
Villanueva
,
BSN, RN
Surgical Care Unit
Endeavor Health Edward Hospital
Naperville
,
IL
United States
1st Nomination
I don’t know where to begin, other than to say that Max was a dream. He makes a bad situation so much nicer. He explains everything and is so attentive. He went above and beyond to care for my son, who was in extreme pain. He never had an attitude, and even though he had many patients, he was super kind. We had him for two days, and we were so grateful to have him for the second day.
My son had to come back a second time to this floor after surgery, and the difference between nurses was night and day. Not that the others were bad, just that Max was exceptional. He should be the one in charge of teaching other nurses.
Since we have come home and I can fully concentrate on my thoughts in all this trauma, my son and I have continuously talked about Max and also Stephanie. We needed Max more at that time than he can even realize. To the point we consider him family. He calmed our nerves when we had to go for another CT scan to see where the infection was coming from after his surgery. Then a blood order came stat, and that scared us even more. They were looking for sepsis, and we all know we don’t ever want to hear that.
We didn’t have a doctor talking to us explaining things for over 3 to 4 hours after the CT scan, but Max was there to explain things to us. We also got an order to get another IV in my son, and he immediately got Stephanie to come and help out. She stuck with us as well and was so calming and confident with her work. They both assured us she was the best. We needed that because my son has very deep veins and is pretty compromised after three rounds of chemotherapy. His last round, it took 5 nurses and 11 pokes to get the IV in finally. So we have our reasons for not looking forward to another IV. She did a fantastic job and made us laugh.
They were truly a team together. Our CT scan finally came in, along with various bloodwork and cultures, and they both explained things to us. Max was also so sweet, doing whatever he could for us, down to writing on my son’s cups what he had to drink and labeling them, all with a smiley face on top as you drink. He used the dry-erase board all the time and checked off when he sat in a chair, walked in the hallway, and did any other things we were waiting for. He was always on time when meds were supposed to be taken. He is such a kind, knowledgeable, caring man!
2nd Nomination
Max has gone above and beyond for my fiancé and our family. On the first night we stayed at the hospital after surgery, we had a pleasant experience with the nurses, though nothing stood out. He was then discharged and went home, and 24 hours later, we were headed to the ER, and he was readmitted to the SCU. Max was our nurse for two days, and we cannot praise him enough! He is so attentive, informative, a great teacher to the nursing student shadowing him, and a clearly amazing person. We wish every nurse were as thoughtful, attentive, and caring as he has been.
I don’t know where to begin, other than to say that Max was a dream. He makes a bad situation so much nicer. He explains everything and is so attentive. He went above and beyond to care for my son, who was in extreme pain. He never had an attitude, and even though he had many patients, he was super kind. We had him for two days, and we were so grateful to have him for the second day.
My son had to come back a second time to this floor after surgery, and the difference between nurses was night and day. Not that the others were bad, just that Max was exceptional. He should be the one in charge of teaching other nurses.
Since we have come home and I can fully concentrate on my thoughts in all this trauma, my son and I have continuously talked about Max and also Stephanie. We needed Max more at that time than he can even realize. To the point we consider him family. He calmed our nerves when we had to go for another CT scan to see where the infection was coming from after his surgery. Then a blood order came stat, and that scared us even more. They were looking for sepsis, and we all know we don’t ever want to hear that.
We didn’t have a doctor talking to us explaining things for over 3 to 4 hours after the CT scan, but Max was there to explain things to us. We also got an order to get another IV in my son, and he immediately got Stephanie to come and help out. She stuck with us as well and was so calming and confident with her work. They both assured us she was the best. We needed that because my son has very deep veins and is pretty compromised after three rounds of chemotherapy. His last round, it took 5 nurses and 11 pokes to get the IV in finally. So we have our reasons for not looking forward to another IV. She did a fantastic job and made us laugh.
They were truly a team together. Our CT scan finally came in, along with various bloodwork and cultures, and they both explained things to us. Max was also so sweet, doing whatever he could for us, down to writing on my son’s cups what he had to drink and labeling them, all with a smiley face on top as you drink. He used the dry-erase board all the time and checked off when he sat in a chair, walked in the hallway, and did any other things we were waiting for. He was always on time when meds were supposed to be taken. He is such a kind, knowledgeable, caring man!
2nd Nomination
Max has gone above and beyond for my fiancé and our family. On the first night we stayed at the hospital after surgery, we had a pleasant experience with the nurses, though nothing stood out. He was then discharged and went home, and 24 hours later, we were headed to the ER, and he was readmitted to the SCU. Max was our nurse for two days, and we cannot praise him enough! He is so attentive, informative, a great teacher to the nursing student shadowing him, and a clearly amazing person. We wish every nurse were as thoughtful, attentive, and caring as he has been.