To be an extraordinary nurse requires more than clinical expertise. It takes someone with compassion, who can instill confidence and reduce anxiety; who can support the team during a crisis and make difficult situations bearable. To be honored as an extraordinary nurse does not always mean that one has to have a list of astonishing and radical patient life-saving experiences. Because, ultimately, leadership and excellence are not about glorious crowning acts. It is about supporting your team to stay focused on a goal and inspiring them to achieve it, especially when the stakes are high and the consequences really matter. It is about laying the foundation for others' success and then enjoying the collective sense of pride and achievement. This is exactly the kind of nurse Melissa Moreira is. Her motto is, "All for one and one for all".
Melissa is always first to respond to emergencies, regardless whose patient it is. During the recent code emergency, she remained by her colleague's side, making sure she had an extra pair of hands and all the equipment and supplies needed. Codes are very stressful, and Melissa's steady presence was crucial not only for participating in the code but also for providing moral support for the nurse whose patient was in distress.
On another occasion, Melissa spent long hours with a patient with a terminal diagnosis who just underwent surgery and was so crippled with pain and shattered by her diagnosis that she was not able to focus on immediate recovery. She was so overwhelmed with multiple decisions that awaited her in the future, she did not want her kids to visit her, although she missed them very much. Melissa's gentle presence and her ability to help the patient focus on the "here and now" deescalated the situation. Of course, Melissa needed to use her clinical expertise in pain management to help the patient, but it was the comfort of Melissa's presence, not just her excellent clinical skills that the patient later thanked her for.
Melissa has a gift for sensing where she is needed most and then helping in the most inconspicuous and casual ways, whether it is a simple lunch coverage or caring for the entire pod of patients during a code.
One of our long-term patients who spent almost two months on our unit wrote, "Melissa is the most caring and pleasant person I have ever met. She will be the sunshine the DAISY needs".
Perhaps the quote from her fellow co-workers can describe what Melissa means to our unit: "In deep appreciation of all you do, who you are and the incredibly meaningful differences you make in the lives of so many people".