At my campus, we frequently are asked to share our “why.” My “why” does not necessarily start and represent why I became a nurse. My why represents my path into nursing leadership and the gratitude I have for being a part of such a compassionate team. I have witnessed the most inspirational stories in the last year and honestly believe the Med-Surg team deserves to be recognized.   

I love watching the consistent care they provide to our patients, whether they are admitted for 24 hours or 191 days (about 6 and a half months). The team takes our patients in and genuinely treats them as family. They do not do these things for any recognition, or praise, but as the norm. There are many small acts of kindness they show every day through listening, encouraging, and providing companionship. There have been days of “pampering,” celebration of birthdays, decorating, and inclusion in the holidays on the unit.   

Holidays are a special time for everyone, and spending time with loved ones during this time is often especially important. Our staff went above and beyond, making one patient feel at home and like she was spending Thanksgiving with her family. Last Thanksgiving, I brought food for the team. I walked by our complex patient’s room, and she was not in there. The patient was an elopement risk, so I immediately panicked. The secretary informed me she was in the room enjoying the Thanksgiving lunch with the staff. It was a joy to walk in to see her sitting with the team eating her Thanksgiving lunch like she was with her own family for the holiday.  

We want all our patients to feel like family when they are here, and one of our complex patients who was here for 6 months became a “part of our family.” She was here during Halloween, so the team invited her to our employee trunk or treat gathering hosted in the hospital parking lot. She smiled the entire time she was there, and it brought so much joy to her and our team members. Unfortunately for this patient, she was still here when Christmas rolled around, and once again, my staff was determined to make it a great Christmas for this patient. They did 12 days of Christmas for this patient, bought her 12 presents and she opened one each day of the 12 days leading to Christmas. When she left, everyone was so sad to say their goodbyes. A team member has since visited her in the new facility close to an hour away.   

Long lengths of stay in the hospital are always hard on our patients. It is often easy to forget the patient has been stuck inside and sometimes stuck in a small room. This last year, we had a bedbound patient whom staff felt really needed some time outside and were determined to make this happen. Two of the team members coordinated with the ED, got a stretcher, and took him down to the ambulance bay where he could get some sunshine. To me this exemplifies our team to the fullest, as I have always seen them as rays of sunshine making a difference in the lives of so many people.  

For our patients, life on the outside does not stop while they are here being cared for. This hit home to our team when a patient’s sister passed after being in critical care due to a stroke.  I rounded on the patient to see how she was doing, and she could not stop complimenting and praising our nursing staff. She said she was amazed and so thankful the staff took their time to listen, pray, and comfort her. She stated that our staff was with her through the most difficult time, and that she would always be grateful for this.   

Sad situations are inevitable in life, especially in the hospital setting. Our team always tries to celebrate when they can and provide patients with not only a pleasant experience but also a happy one. Another one of our recent long-term patients kept informing the team about her birthday and how she wanted to celebrate her birthday. She was still in the hospital on her birthday, so the team bought her pink gifts (her favorite color). They bought her cupcakes, gathered everybody on the floor, and sang to her in her bed. The patient burst into tears before the song had even ended, and you could see the joy and happiness radiating from her face. Our staff truly spoiled her that day and showed her how truly compassionate and caring our team is. She got to see a little bit of what I see every day from our team.  

Our last and most recent story involves a man who was unable to go home until he was able to lose some weight, which would provide him with the mobility to better take care of himself. When he was finally able to go home, he wrote a thank you letter to the staff. I would like to end this nomination with the words from this patient: “I came back to you all to begin the process of making me human again [...] Through strict dieting, I began losing weight. I want to thank you all for everything. Walking, changing, showering, and using the restroom. Because of the great staff, I am going home 100 percent better and ready to change my life. Your time and dedication to helping me was amazing, and I would like to thank each of you, but there are too many wonderful staff members.”