Cancer is a diagnosis that you do not want to hear. Throughout the journey, there was a lot of fear and uncertainty about what was to come. I had surgery to have a double mastectomy in late summer, and I was scared. I met Monica during the Preop portion, and she had an excellent demeanor. She was reassuring, and knowing I was scared, she went over each step of what she was going to do. She was patient and answered a lot of my questions in detail. I also appreciated that she included my family in the process and did not just speak to me but included us both. While my partner and I are both in health care, it is different when you are the patient and are the ones receiving the care. You become vulnerable to the situation, and some things you should know as a nurse disappear when you are the patient.

After surgery, I was lucky to have Monica as my post-op nurse. She was so detailed with the instructions that I did not have to refer to them once I got home. She was very empathetic to what I just went through and was very caring. When you think about how nursing should be, Monica exhibited everything you envision a nurse to be. It would be very remiss of me not to mention how she interacted with her colleagues. What a team player. She was helpful to those who needed it, whether it was her patient or not. While crossing paths with her was not an ideal situation, I was very happy that I met her, as she made my experience memorable. I will never forget the kindness and care you provided when I was under your care. Thank you, Monica!