I nominated Stacey Stone, Charge nurse at Acute Pediatrics, due to the following: Trust, compassion, Advocacy, collaboration, respect, and exemplary practice. Stacey has repeatedly shown how compassionate, attentive, and supportive she is with several of our behaviorally compromised patients. We had a long-term patient that was placed here for several months due to his diagnosis of ASD and is non-verbal. Stacey gained his trust and provided him with love, attention, and support during his “temper tantrums” as well as provided him with time away from the unit in the garden, walks around the unit, playing his favorite music, and helping in making him feel safe.

This patient learned her name and would smile when she was around! We had other patients that were admitted with severe eating disorders, and she has had a couple of them feel encouraged by creating a safe environment to share as well as have a team of us called “G’s Aces” where she made mugs for all of us and the patient to focus on her not being alone during this difficult process.

We have had other very volatile and aggressive patients that she has assisted in de-escalating, and we have sat on the floor together holding the patient’s hands and providing comfort during a crisis time. In one of our last admissions with another long-term placement, a behaviorally compromised child, she developed a rapport and helped the patient agree to procedures and even went down to surgery with her and held her hand as she fell asleep with sedation since this patient had no parents at the bedside!

I can go on and on about Stacey’s abilities and huge heart! In my 20-plus years here I have seen her always be available to understand the misunderstood, communicate with the ones that don’t, advocate for the ones without a voice, and provide amazing and loving care to patients that most people would be unclear or afraid about how to help. She is an amazing nurse that always puts the patients first!