The beginning of my story is sad, but the purpose of this email is to let you know about your Extraordinary Nurse, Sarah, who got me through one of life’s most difficult situations. My spouse passed away at one of your hospitals. I received a call that they were in a full cardiac arrest, and they were doing CPR. That will wake you up. When I got back to my spouse's room that was when I met Sarah, the day shift nurse. Sarah was so wonderful during such a tough time. The doctor had already rounded but she told me she would get him to come back at the end of rounds. She again explained all she was doing and continued to talk to me with such kindness and compassion. When the doctor came in, he spoke to me about comfort measures. I asked a couple of questions and he started to kind of back pedal, telling me I could wait for 24-48 hours. When he left, I asked Sarah if she could tell me in plain English what she thought the prognosis was. She gave me her honest opinion. I asked if I could see his Chest X-Ray. I looked at the chest x-ray, read the report, and made the decision to sign the consent for comfort measures. Sarah walked me through the entire process. It is hard for me to express how wonderful she was. She explained everything in detail. When the paperwork was done, my spouse would not be alone. She would be there the entire time even if it meant staying past her shift.

I left the hospital and Sarah asked if I would call her when I got home. She knew that I was upset, and it was storming that day. I called her when I returned home, and she again updated me where she was in the process and reassured me again that my spouse would not be alone. She also expressed concern that I was alone, and I told her a friend was coming over. Sarah called and said, "you made the right decision." She asked if my friend was with me, and I told her she was pulling up in the driveway. Sarah was happy I would not be alone and told me to call her if I needed to ask any questions. She was there for me. I do not know how to put this in the correct words, but I will never forget my interactions with Sarah. She made this most awful day, something I can look back on with calmness and peace.

I think her treatment of my spouse and me that day makes her a true DAISY Nurse. I am so proud to know that there are so many team members that do the right thing every day for patients and their families. I just want you both to know how much your team means to me personally. I will never forget all the positive things that happened during such a terrible time. I have told everyone who has asked about my spouse’s passing of the truly extraordinary care we both received.