It's difficult to choose just one situation or story in which Tucker Taff's actions exemplify the criteria of the DAISY in Training Award because I believe there have been multiple instances. Tucker chose to pursue a clinical rotation at Children's Mercy this semester knowing the challenges that lie ahead of them. Tucker had one patient specifically that was a younger child who unfortunately had been in the hospital by themselves for most of their stay.

As it turns out, the child had little support from family and only the patient's grandmother had come to visit on occasion. Tucker entered what they thought was going to be a short conversation but soon discovered that this patient needed Tucker more than they realized. After speaking with the patient for a short time, Tucker uncovered that the patient was being bullied at school and had a broken relationship with their parents, making their situation worse. Tucker listened intently and gave the patient their attention for longer than anyone else had in quite a while. Tucker shared with the patient about their experiences, asked who the patient felt they could go to for support, and discussed with them how to cope and manage their emotions related to the bullying at school.

While some students might have been at a loss for words, Tucker found empathy with the child and used therapeutic communication to educate about mental health. I think that this instance demonstrates that Tucker is deserving of the DAISY in Training Award because it goes to show that sometimes as nurses, we just need to give patients our time. Tucker provided a safe space for this child to open up and communicate about the difficulties they are facing. I think this scenario says a lot about Tucker's character as a nurse, student, and as a person.

It's true that Tucker did not provide a life-saving nursing intervention that exemplified their clinical skills. However, they did give someone with very little support the time of day and their full attention and I believe that is a life-saving intervention. I believe that Tucker Taff is deserving of the DAISY in Training Award because they have exemplified multiple times what it means to be a caring, compassionate, curious, empathetic, resilient, intelligent, and skilled nurse, advocate, and student.