I had my micro-preemie baby at 27 weeks. So we spent 4 and a half months in the NICU. We had dozens of different nurses, some good, some just ok, some not good at all, but a few of those that were absolutely amazing. We could choose 4 primary nurses to have continuation of care. It was quite hard to find the ideal nurses with plenty of experience, good communication style, attentive and mostly companionate and loving towards my son, so it took me a while… I had almost completed the team of 4 when I met Susie half way into our stay. Her previous primary baby had gone home the day before (that’s why I had never seen her before). It only took me a couple of hours with her to realize she was such an amazing nurse! I asked her right away if she wanted to be our primary! (I did not want to take a chance that someone else would choose her first). She accepted and I was so happy, I knew my baby was going to have another great nurse from now on, but Oh mine! I had no idea how she would go way beyond anything I had seen about great nurses and take this role to a whole new level!

If I had to describe it in just a few words, Susie adopted my son as her own during that NICU stay! She not only did everything in her power to be assigned to him every single one of her shifts, but she also took as many extra shifts as she was allowed to be with him as many days of the week as possible. She modified her schedule to overlap the minimum possible with his other primaries. She even picked her work days to make sure to be there when something important was happening, like surgery day, when he was sick, when a big change in feedings was happening….I overheard other nurses telling her she was around very often, to what she answered: “When I have a primary baby. I try to work as many days as I’m allowed to make sure they are well taken care of.” Who does that? Work more days to be with someone else’s baby. Only someone that cares about these little ones as if they were her own! And after getting to know her better I understood better why… she herself had twins at 27 weeks that were in the NICU for a long time. She knows firsthand what a difference it makes for babies and parents to have amazing nurses that you can trust and know your baby as well as you do. What is normal, what is not, what each type of cry means…. She was so committed to making sure he always had a good nurse that when she was not going to be with him, she was in advance talking to the charge nurse to make sure he either had one of his other primary nurses or another good nurse! She advocated for him so much! Not only with other nurses, people managing rooming changes, people preparing his feeds, but also providers.

Her 30 years of experience were invaluable at the time of rounds, I would always appreciate having her opinion on how she had seen other babies response to certain changes, whether it was feeding schedules, formula fortification, respiratory requirements, surgeries. She would always approach the topics with respect for the doctors but also with so much knowledge and wisdom that only first-hand experience seeing those babies can give! It was absolutely invaluable to have her in our rounds. Every aspect of Susie has been beyond excellent, his nursing skills, commitment and love for her work, bedside manners, every little thing was just perfect. From a perfectly organized room fully staffed with supplies for baby and parents, to expertise in the most difficult NICU nurse procedures. She was the kind of nurse that you rarely see sitting down, not unless everything is done and babies are peacefully sleeping. Many times Susie was back and forth non-stop all day making sure babies and parents had everything they needed, she would stay pass her work time to chart in the computer and make sure to say bye after checking his next nurse was a good one! I was so amazed by her commitment, passion and love for her job… she acts like it’s not a job at all, it just seems an act of love…It is not easy to go home and leave your newborn baby in someone else’s hands. So every morning I would check the “my chart hospital App” and see who was with him that day. And when her picture appeared, I was so relieved! I knew no one else could take better care of him. I could actually take five more minutes in the shower or even get some laundry and dishes done before heading to the hospital, because I knew she was there with him.

Close to discharge time, she would encourage me to get some extra sleep and time to deep clean the house while she was there…. She knew I could do that only when she was around… Because she was not only performing her nursing tasks to the point of perfection. She was also sitting down with him every “free time”, reading him books, singing songs, playing his mobile or mirror (that she found for him, as every other toy and gadget available in the unit but in stort supply). She was also my teacher on how to use medical devices or give meds that my son needed to go home, like the G-tube. She was so patient and great as a teacher! What else can I say? We are about to leave the NICU and I know that once we are home, Susie will pass from being one of his primary nurses to his beloved aunty Susie. I will do everything in my power to find her and make sure she gets updates on my son’s progress, and we can give her back some of that love and gratitude.

I’m never going to forget how having her in the middle of the most traumatic event in my life brought so much comfort and peace of mind. I’ll be forever thankful, and I would like to nominate her for this award. Because she has been amazing not only for me and my son, but countless other babies and parents throughout the years, and she can no longer go on unrecognized…. That level of going above and beyond needs to be acknowledged and publicly celebrated. We love Susie! Help me show her that love with this award. Thank you!