My 9 year old granddaughter was in a precarious situation in the ED. Unable to immediately diagnose her and with her heart rate dipping below 50bpm we were all very worried and anxious. Wendy Doll was the nurse taking care of her. I have been at VVH for 12 years and am always amazed and grateful to its nurses whenever I have interacted with them, either as a patient, family member or coworker. I have known Wendy for years.

She had the situation completely under control. She responded immediately to physician orders, while at the same time, telling my granddaughter what was going on and how things were going to happen. My granddaughter is terrified of needles - getting an IV in her takes three people. One to insert the IV and two to hold her down. Wendy was completely calm and competent - she talked to my granddaughter the entire time as she successfully found a vein. It was heartwarming as we watched her make eye contact with my granddaughter after it was over and talk to her about what she had just gone through validating her fears while at the same time, calming her down.

I was witness to grace and competence under extreme pressure, proficiency and skill under difficult circumstances and empathetic caregiving in an emergent situation. She is a gift to nursing and Valley View Hospital.