I was a patient with MyMichigan Midland L&D with a scheduled C-section under the care of Whitney. I'm also a fellow provider within MyMichigan.

One of the patient groups I work primarily with is postpartum women. Walking into the hospital that morning for my C-section, I already had all of the worst-case scenarios running through my head, as you would working with this population. Whitney knew this. I don't even know where to start with describing the outstanding care Whitney provided to not only me, but also my partner and my birth support person.

From the moment I arrived, Whitney stood at my bedside and went through all of the day's events, as well as answered all of my concerns and questions. She was validating of all of my concerns and was a wonderful liaison between me and all of the other providers coming into the room. She made sure that my birth plan was maintained and spoke up even when I couldn't.

During the actual procedure, Whitney never left my side. She would actively explain to me in layman's terms what was going on around me and what was expected of me. She let me squeeze her hands so hard and basically held me in a hug while the epidural needle was inserted into my back. She was so positive and made me feel like the biggest, baddest woman to have ever gone through a birth.

I can't begin to explain how wonderful it made me feel when I came into the OR feeling very nervous. She picked up on the fact that my favorite artist was Taylor Swift and made sure to have her playing from the moment I got into the OR. Despite other providers in the room asking me questions about how I was feeling, I felt the most comfortable talking with Whitney. She would listen to my response with the other providers and then come over to my bedside and make sure that my response was actually true to myself and not just trying to be people-pleasing. She was so aware, and I will forever be grateful for that.

After my C-section, Whitney was right by my side, talking me through all of the symptoms and validating my concerns. My son had to go to the nursery, and I was unable to see him for the first 6 hours post-partum. Whitney kept all of us informed and took pictures for us. She was so wonderful with my two support people and even went and made us special postpartum cocktails of Sprite and cranberry juice to cheer us up during this time. Anyone who's ever given birth knows that the first night in the hospital is just chaos, and especially as first-time parents, you just feel clueless.

Whitney went above and beyond and came onto the floor the next day to check on me, even on her day off! I'm pretty sure I cried when I saw her! Her familiar face will always be associated with my son's birth and my immediate post-partum period.

Whitney goes above and beyond any nurse I've ever met. Working in healthcare, I've come in contact with many nurses, and I've never met someone so passionate about her job and passionate about patient satisfaction. Working in L&D has got to be an incredible experience, with amazing days, but also really hard days. You would never know, meeting her, that Whitney had ever gone through any hard days. She treated me and my family as her own. I could not have been more impressed by her.