My mother-in-law was a patient at REX for 4 days until she passed away. She was in the CSICU even though she had not had surgery. My wife (the patient's daughter) and I arrived from Florida late the day after she was admitted. We arrived at the room early the next morning to meet with the doctors. Shelly was her assigned nurse for the day shift. Her knowledge and skill were immediately evident; however, her compassion is the reason she deserves recognition.
Obviously, my wife was very concerned about her mother's discomfort and therefore began asking several questions combined with requests of the staff to provide her mom whatever comfort and calmness she could. Her daughter is a very emotional person and could see that her mom was not doing well which caused emotional reactions (crying). Shelly immediately sensed this and came over to her, put her arms around her, and assured her that her mom was getting the best care and attention they could render. By doing this we both understood better what the staff's plan was for her care and comfort. As her condition worsened during the day (intubated) Shelly was assigned solely to my mother-in-law. Her communication, care, and compassion toward my mother-in-law and us, was very special, definitely well above what her acceptable standards would have been, and what we would have expected. We've never had a healthcare professional as impressive as Shelly.