Shonda Sprinkle
November 2023
Shonda
Sprinkle
,
LPN
9th Floor
NYU Langone Orthopedic Hospital
New York
,
NY
United States
I would walk into my mom's room and see Shonda calming my mom and speaking to her in calming tones to help ease her fears and anxiety. No matter how difficult my mother was, Shonda never lost sight that this is a scared human being who is suffering.
My 85-year-old mother had brain surgery for a mengionoma (2nd time) at NYU. Three days later she had a stroke. This left her with paralysis of her ride side, and she could not speak. After being in the ICU unit for two weeks at the Kimmel Pavilion, she was also diagnosed with Aphasia and delirium.
My mother was in very bad shape upon admittance to RUSK as a stroke rehabilitation patient on the 9th floor. If it wasn't for my mother's 3 therapists, speech, physical, and occupational, my mother would not have made the phenomenal progress she has. She is walking and speaking.
But the individual who stands out among the many, many nurses and medical personnel I met is Shonda Sprinkle. I am forever grateful for the compassionate, kind, patient, knowledgeable, and professional care my mother received from Shonda. In total, my mother has been in medical facilities for three months. I have met and interacted with dozens of nurses in 4 different facilities. Not one of them treated my mother with the respect and equality that Shonda has. She talked to my mother as a person and asked her permission before approaching her with medications or taking vitals. Lo and behold, she treated an elderly woman with kindness and compassion! This was unheard of in my three month experience as my mother's advocate.
My mom was very disoriented in the mornings and in the evenings, was experiencing sundowning. I would walk into my mom's room and see Shonda calming my mom and speaking to her in calming tones to help ease her fears and anxiety. She never talked at my mom, and she never disregarded her feelings because she was elderly or because my mother's mental clarity was declining. No matter how difficult my mother was (she would get agitated) Shonda never lost sight that this is a scared human being who is suffering.
I also need to say that during the six weeks my mother was a patient at RUSK, I myself had many emotional meltdowns from worrying about my mom's future. Shonda took time during her busy schedule to make sure I was okay. Shonda went above and beyond her responsibilities, and for that, I will be eternally grateful and indebted to her. Shonda lives up to her name, because she brightens and brings a special touch to all her patients and their loved ones!
My mother was in very bad shape upon admittance to RUSK as a stroke rehabilitation patient on the 9th floor. If it wasn't for my mother's 3 therapists, speech, physical, and occupational, my mother would not have made the phenomenal progress she has. She is walking and speaking.
But the individual who stands out among the many, many nurses and medical personnel I met is Shonda Sprinkle. I am forever grateful for the compassionate, kind, patient, knowledgeable, and professional care my mother received from Shonda. In total, my mother has been in medical facilities for three months. I have met and interacted with dozens of nurses in 4 different facilities. Not one of them treated my mother with the respect and equality that Shonda has. She talked to my mother as a person and asked her permission before approaching her with medications or taking vitals. Lo and behold, she treated an elderly woman with kindness and compassion! This was unheard of in my three month experience as my mother's advocate.
My mom was very disoriented in the mornings and in the evenings, was experiencing sundowning. I would walk into my mom's room and see Shonda calming my mom and speaking to her in calming tones to help ease her fears and anxiety. She never talked at my mom, and she never disregarded her feelings because she was elderly or because my mother's mental clarity was declining. No matter how difficult my mother was (she would get agitated) Shonda never lost sight that this is a scared human being who is suffering.
I also need to say that during the six weeks my mother was a patient at RUSK, I myself had many emotional meltdowns from worrying about my mom's future. Shonda took time during her busy schedule to make sure I was okay. Shonda went above and beyond her responsibilities, and for that, I will be eternally grateful and indebted to her. Shonda lives up to her name, because she brightens and brings a special touch to all her patients and their loved ones!