We arrived at Boston Children's Hospital with our son to have his fourth open-heart surgery. We live out of state and this is our third visit to BCH. We have always been very pleased with the care we have received from all the medical professionals at the hospital. After my son's surgery, he was sent to the CICU for his recovery. All of the nurses and medical staff there did a tremendous job; however, Rebecca Ward who was one of my son's nurses for two days was a person that stood out amongst others in that unit. She was a consummate professional who displayed the knowledge and expertise in her abilities during the two shifts that she worked to take care of our son. Rebecca not only took excellent care of our son but she also had fantastic interpersonal skills that were reflected in her personality. She made an effort to build a professional relationship with our son, my wife, and myself. Rebecca displayed wonderful bedside manner by having empathy, compassion, and concern for our son during his stay. Rebecca's excellent assessment skills were shown through her astuteness and attentiveness during his stay as well. She always was concerned about his comfort level and she had the foresight to know when he was in pain so she addressed it right away. More importantly, she constantly assessed him by asking him questions and she never discounted any of his pain or concerns. When my son was awake she always made sure he was comfortable and helped to keep him calm and comfortable. Rebecca also took the time to educate and explain everything to us. She answered our questions and encouraged us to ask questions. She understood that this was a very stressful time for us as parents and always tried to put us at ease whenever possible. Over the years with our son's health, we have met nurses across the country who are average, good, and excellent. Rebecca is one of those rare nurses who is far greater than excellent; she is absolutely exceptional! She goes over and above the Nurses Pledge in everything she does. It is obvious that Rebecca truly loves her profession and it shows in her smile, attitude, ethics, and all of her actions. I am an HR professional in the healthcare field and have hired many nurses. It would be a complete honor and privilege to hire and work with Rebecca at any of the facilities I represent. Rebecca's actions during her time with our son and us were greatly appreciated. We wanted to acknowledge her efforts and share how fortunate and blessed we were to have her as our son's nurse. Her actions brought credit upon herself and were keeping within the highest standards and traditions of BCH.