Michel Bayless
February 2023
Michel
Bayless
,
BSN
4-1
Silver Cross Hospital
New Lenox
,
IL
United States
She listened to me, and she talked to me, always making time no matter how busy she was.
I was unfortunately admitted to the hospital on Halloween. For the five days that I was on the 4th floor, I was the lucky patient to have Michel for three of the five days. Let me preface by saying, the entire nursing staff and CNAs were all amazing. Besides giving birth to my children 19-plus years ago, this was my first hospital admission for a health concern, so you can imagine my anxiety level! Having Michel as my nurse made me feel like I had a guardian angel watching over me. Each day inpatient for me got a little worse both physically, mentally, and emotionally. But that guardian angel had Michel assigned to me for a reason and that reason was to provide comfort, care, and emotional support to help me get through this. As Michel even said herself, that is why she is a nurse! She treated me with dignity and respect as if I were her family member. She listened to me, and she talked to me, always making time no matter how busy she was. She said things to me that made it all seem ok. Despite how scared I was she took the time to calm me and explain it all in a way I would understand. She even took the time to not only explain things to my 19 yr. old son but go the extra mile and actually show him and teach him to understand as he is currently going through paramedic school. How many nurses offer to come in on their day off to be there for that crying patient (me) who is scared for the risky procedure the next day? I too work in healthcare (not as a nurse), but unfortunately know the realization of what is going on since COVID, with staffing shortages, burnout, and working with many unknowns and frustrations - basically having the weight of the world on your shoulders. And here, I got lucky enough to meet someone that you don’t find often in times like this. Someone who wears her heart on her sleeve 24/7 and who has the utmost compassion for her job despite these hard times. From her comforting words to her making me coffee to soothe my caffeine withdrawal headache, she just went above and beyond. For this and so much more, I nominate Michel from the 4th floor for the DAISY Award because she exhibits the true definition of what it means to be a nurse.