Patients with progressive nurses who are in tune with their every need have the best chance of success. We have a patient in MICU who had multiple co-morbidities of stroke, cardiomyopathy, and prostate cancer. He also has a significant lower extremity wound and a chest tube for empyema. Prior days to Sydney taking care of him, he has been bed-bound, doing bed exercises with PT. However, Sydney listened to the patient’s eventual goals which were to go home and maintain independence. She begged the therapist to walk with him.

They carefully attached the patient to the portable monitor, hooked the suction on the walking device, and assisted him in standing and slowly take his first few steps. At this time, you can feel the patient’s joy of success. He took more and more steps and a lap within the ICU. Sydney simply stated that she wanted her patient to do well and reach their goals of care.

Not only is she in tune with the humanistic aspect of patient care but also continued to advocate on his behalf, what she believes will help him to get better and go home. It is above and beyond the act of kindness from Sydney that form the staircase to recovery for our patients. She quickly changed the bed with clean bedsheets and congratulated this patient on his success in the PT session. You can tell she genuinely takes pride in taking care of other human beings with kindness and love. You may be able to find nurses who can give medicine, read vital signs, and chart assessments perfectly, but nurses like Sydney deliver the invaluable human touch which shed light during dark times in people’s lives. We love her.