Hello. I would like to nominate Tenicia Hauck, RN for her care of a patient in the APU (Acute psych unit) in the ED.
Tenicia has provided exceptional care to one of our patients who has been in the ED for over a month awaiting placement. As you know, the ED is not an appropriate place for any patient to be boarding. We have no windows on our unit. This patient has Autism and is non-verbal. While many nurses also provided care, Tenicia has been one of the primary psych nurses during the daytime. She has advocated for this patient, bought food and toys for him with her own money, created a communication tool with pictures, made a daily plan for him and trained other nurses about the plan. Tenicia has treated this young man with dignity and respect, greeting him each day with a smile and helping him in any way she can, including taking him for walks when it is safe to do so. Despite not having specific training in autism, she went above and beyond to educate herself in order to provide the best care possible to him.
There is hope for this patient to be placed in the next few weeks. Until then, I know he will be well cared for and we will continue to do the best we can.
Tenicia is a wonderful nurse. She advocates for her patients, is a leader and team player, and has been involved in projects to help improve the process in the Acute Psych Unit. Despite a very difficult month - attempting to provide the type of care a nurse would provide for an admitted patient (not a busy ER) - Tenicia has never wavered in her compassion for this patient, as an advocate for her other patients, and as a team player.