Craig Stiles
July 2021
Ronald
Stiles
,
BSN, RN
Intensive Care Unit
Sentara Albemarle Medical Center
Elizabeth City
,
NC
United States
Craig was attentive, engaged and I could feel his empathy radiating through the entire room.
Recently, one of our own was the code in progress. A DAISY ED Nurse of 30 years went into cardiac arrest. The staff worked tirelessly to save one of our own. He was transferred to ICU later that day and for a week this is where he stayed until his scheduled extubation. This is where Craig's extraordinary story starts: The day started out like any other day except it wasn’t just any other day. The ICU was full and 3S had called an MRT for a patient who needed a higher level of care. Craig was not scheduled to work on this day. As I was waiting for my relief in OVSA 1 (the 3S MRT patient), I heard the manager say Craig agreed to come in until 2. My relief arrived and I walked over to the ICU to see if I could help anyone else before I took a few minutes to visit with a coworker (who was a patient) and his family. When I walked into our coworker’s room, Craig was explaining to the family that he was going to give our coworker some medication to ensure he is comfortable. He was attentive, engaged and I could feel his empathy radiating through the entire room. I also heard Craig say that the number of staff, family, and friends that had stopped by to see our coworker was a true testament to the man that he was (I’m paraphrasing since I don’t remember the exact words). He was phenomenal in his care, not only for our coworker but for everyone in the room. As I was getting ready to leave he offered words of comfort to me, and I felt our coworker’s presence was there. Our coworker’s son made a post on Facebook and tagged SAMC in it: To Craig his ICU nurse (please tag him if you know him) you are an angel. In my father’s last days, you loved him so well. You kept us informed and respected all of our needs and wishes. We are forever grateful to you. Craig came into work that Friday to help out the ICU team, and he ended up doing so much more. He provided a dying man’s family with moments of peace and comfort because of his extraordinary care. He was comforting in the saddest of circumstances, and his ability to empathize was remarkable. Craig is the embodiment of the DAISY Award and its meaning. Thank you, Craig, you were and are an amazing nurse and asset to our profession and team.