I am endlessly impressed with the level of care, compassion, empathy, and respect that I see in Nicole each day, as she cares for her patients and interacts with her colleagues and patient families. She truly goes above and beyond on a regular basis, but this week she reinvigorated my nursing spirit as I watched her advocate for her patient and coordinate a beautiful end-of-life experience for her patient at the request of the family. The way she told me the story brought tears to my eyes.

When the family chose to take the route of comfort care, they expressed to Nicole (the bedside RN) that in their culture, it is bad luck to pass away in the bed, and they would like to place their family member on the hospital floor as they passed. Nicole reached out to her leadership to ensure this was okay and immediately stepped into action to coordinate the resources she would need to fulfill this request. She sent a patient care tech to borrow a gurney mattress from the ED and organized a team of staff and lift coaches to lower the patient carefully to the mattress on the floor while cautiously using pillows to prop the patient to ensure comfort while they passed. 

Once the patient was safely settled onto the mattress on the floor, per the family's request, the family members were able to gather around the patient on the floor, play soft music, and continue with other end-of-life traditions that resulted in a calm, respectful passing for the patient.

It is not often that we in the ICU are able to provide such a peaceful ending for a patient, due to the nature of our work environment, but on this day Nicole truly created a special experience that was appreciated beyond words by the family. She is a true role model for her ICU colleagues and exemplifies excellence in critical care nursing.