On Tower 8, we had a patient, Mr. M, who had been admitted the night before. Mr. M was homeless and had not showered for 5 years. One of our ANIIs, Raul Rivera had introduced himself to this patient, like he always does with all of the patients on our unit, and noticed the patient had a large amount of hair, that was not groomed. Not showering for 5 years, not able to groom yourself for 5 years, I am sure we can all imagine the odor in the patient's room. With no judgment, no hesitation, only complete compassion, Raul offered to groom the patient and give him a "fresh look". The patient stated he would appreciate it. However, the patient was not too familiar with Raul and did not know when Raul does something; he generally goes all out for the patients! Raul gave the patient a haircut, cutting about 5 inches of hair that had not been touched for 5 years, groomed his mustache and his eyebrows. Raul still had to break other nurses since he was the relief nurse that day, but he made it a priority to display compassion to this patient. Regardless of the strong smell, Raul did not make the patient feel uncomfortable but made him feel important and valued. Many of the nurses came by to see the patient and it was evident the patient felt a new sense of happiness. He requested a mirror and he became emotional because he was so happy. He was in disbelief of how great he looked! He laughed and said, "Wow!" and asked Raul if he was a barber on the side.
After being in our unit for a couple more days, the patient was transferred to a skilled nursing facility, and he told Nor Cal transporters everything we did for him, and how grateful he was and how he did not expect to receive this type of care in a hospital stay. He was very emotional upon leaving and made sure we knew how much he appreciated what was done for him on Tower 8. This is an excellent example of the care patients should receive when staying here at UC Davis Medical Center. Raul always says how we should treat our patients like we would treat our parents or loved ones, regardless of the reason why they are here with us. The compassion that was delivered during this stay will forever be in Mr. M's heart.