Vanessa works for Convenient Care on a PRN basis. It is after almost every one of her few shifts, though, that I hear something from a patient, a provider, or a staff member about something amazing she did for a patient during her shift. Ambulatory RN's often get lost in the mix of the amazing things that RN's do for patients in our organization. Vanessa isn't involved in codes, or administering life saving medications on a day to day basis, and those tend to be the tasks that stand out as remarkable in the eyes of the public and Carle in general. Her role in an ambulatory setting is life changing to all of her patients. I watched in amusement and awe one day while Vanessa was cheering up a little old gentleman who had come to Convenient Care for pain issues by letting him "teach her" how to dance. There they went up and down the hallway while he was waiting for test results, and when that patient left our department, he was all smiles and feeling better than any medication could have made him feel.

Convenient Care nurses often have to help patients get to follow up appointments in other departments; for a lot of ambulatory RN's this is just a phone call. For Vanessa, it is a calling. In one instance, Vanessa was concerned about a little old couple not understanding where to go for a doctor's appointment due to confusion and the patient's poor hearing. So, she offered to meet them at the check-out desk the next day when their appointment was scheduled and physically escort them back to their Doctor's office to ensure they got where they needed to go. It wasn't a life saving measure by any means, but it was over and above her role and job duties, and it was something that made an impact to that couple.

Recently, Vanessa received a Gold Star for yet another patient who was impacted by her habit of doing everything she possibly can to help her patients to the best of her physical capability. They said this: "Vanessa went out of her way to comfort my daughter with a broken arm. She was gentle, explained what was happening and streamlined the process working with x-ray. Ms. Randolph even checked on us in the waiting room twice. Her care was phenomenal!"

Again, this is one more example of how Vanessa makes a daily impact on every patient she touches, and she does this in an ambulatory setting. None of these patients were dying, none were needing lifesaving interventions-but nursing is about more than that. Nursing is the art of caring for people. Vanessa demonstrates that artistry every shift-and Carle has a lot of happy people out there to thank for it.