March 2023
Tejinder
Kang
,
BSN, RN
7E Complex Medicine
Emory University Hospital
Atlanta
,
GA
United States
TJ looked after his emotional needs offering to bring him DVDs and a DVD player from her house to make sure he could stay connected to things he enjoyed in the world around him.
TJ is the kind of nurse who is always calm, collected, and respectful of patients, families, and our nursing team. As mental health facilities in our area have been especially hard hit by the pandemic, our general medical unit has seen an increase in the number of behavioral health holds, as these vulnerable patients have had no other place to go. I am continually impressed by how easily TJ can work with patients from all walks of life. She can calm a patient with thoughts of suicide going through the darkest days of their life. She can lovingly care for a patient who refuses treatment and is easily agitated by other staff. She has a therapeutic touch that can soothe any patient. I recall a patient who was on our unit for several weeks before we were able to find him appropriate care. As the weeks passed by, TJ looked after his emotional needs offering to bring him DVDs and a DVD player from her house to make sure he could stay connected to things he enjoyed in the world around him. We traditionally think of ourselves as focused on providing medical care. But TJ constantly pushes our staff to think of the whole person. The medical, but also the psychological, the social, and the spiritual. TJ is simply exceptional.