We all believe that Holly is the backbone of our unit. First of all, Holly is a no-nonsense nurse. Being the regular charge nurse on our unit this is a great quality to have as there are often behavioral issues with our patients that require it.
The thing that makes Holly so special is that she balances this with the most sincere compassion I have ever seen given by any nurse in my 10 years in this field. Holly will regularly go above and beyond to meet the needs of her patients by bringing herself down to their level and relating to them in times of crisis.
Holly garners the respect of her peers and supervisors alike for putting herself in harm's way to utilize her uncanny skills of de-escalation while showing caring and respect to our patients in their times of heightened need.
Holly excels in not only meeting and exceeding the needs of our patients but their families as well. Holly has a knack for approaching strained and complex patient/family relationships with a subtle but direct approach that addresses the issues at hand without coming off as judgmental. Holly takes so much pride in her work that she will rise to the task of high demand families and patients as an opportunity to meet the challenge and show them what Children's Hospital in all about.
In addition to being a great asset to our patients, families, and organization, Holly excels at being there for her peers. Holly never hesitates to volunteer her time to listen to the problems and struggles of her colleagues. Holly's catchphrase is "you take care of you first." Holly's ideal is that the best way for her unit to be functioning at its highest capacity is if the people she works with are taken care of and feel supported at work. We are forever grateful for her unconditional support.
Holly has too many strengths to list but some that come to the front is her ability to stay cool and collected when working with other units. Psych is not as black and white as some other medical units and Holly has a special way of making sure things go smoothly when situations arise that makes nurses from other units want to pull their hair out. When our ED is swamped with psych patients Holly will make out of the box solutions to save their sanity. Sometimes she does this by asking those around her to step up to help, and because she leads by example we are all willing to do so.
Holly's peers have offered a wealth of feedback and stories about her exceptional character and work ethic. I will share mine first. I was having a tough week/month/year and really struggling in my personal life. I was having questions about if I could even maintain a job in this field. Holly took the time to listen to me talk about everything that was going on, and in a way, only Holly could made me feel like there was a solution and that things would get better. I will forever grateful for that.
There was a time that Holly questioned what I was doing accessing the internet when I was supposed to be on the floor attending to patients and their families during visiting hours. She didn't know it at the time, but it was to print out coloring pages that a specific high acuity patient was requesting as a means to avoid a crisis. It was a very busy time on our unit and I didn't get a chance to process this interaction with her before we both left for the day. Although I understood her position and was not worried about it at all (mostly due to knowing that Holly doesn't hold grudges or negative feelings) she took the time that evening to send me a text and explain her position while asking for my forgiveness. I, of course, texted back saying that I was in no way worried about it, but I appreciated the gesture.
Even then she could have let that be enough but the thing that makes me never forget it was that this wasn't good enough for her. She wanted to be sure that I understood that this was not the kind of nurse that she wanted to be and that she was going to make an effort to make fewer assumptions and give me the benefit of the doubt.
Here are some other things that her peers on our unit had to say:
"Great person, amazing charge RN, I always feel safe when she's working."
"Her willingness to drop everything and help out is amazing. She is the voice of our unit and advocates."
"I recall a time when a patient was becoming escalated and the situation was becoming dangerous. Everyone had exhausted all of their options and someone was sent to get the restraint chair to be able to keep the patients and staff safe. Holly had never met this patient but knew the background from reading the assessment. Holly asked everyone to give the patient some space and calmly began using the de-escalation techniques in which we are trained in an exemplary fashion. She was able to calm the patient and the patient stated later that they were mostly just overwhelmed by the number of people amassing outside of his room. I'll never forget what I learned that day."
"Holly always collaborates with staff to problem solve, she consistently acknowledges staff for a job well done."
"Holly gives 110% every shift and is constantly supporting others."
"Always advocating for patients and their families, she is a great leader and strong co-worker."
"Holly has very strong clinical, leadership, and management skills. She is always ready to work hard."
"Holly was the key to implementing the nursing acuity scale, she always has her eye on potential safety risks and is a great resource for our unit."
-"Holly is an extremely hard worker, she compassionately cares for everyone on our unit, including us."
"Holly is hands down the most practical, safety oriented, helpful, and dedicated nurse I have seen in my long career. When Holly works, staff know that the unit will run well, and the confidence of her co-workers is at its peak."
In closing, Holly is maybe the most integral person on our unit. More importantly, though she makes me want to do a good job not because I fear reprisal from my supervisors for not doing so but to gain her praise and respect. Hopefully, I have shown you a clear pattern of what it is like to have the privilege of working with Holly Sharkey. She is one of the most hardworking and compassionately involved people I have ever met. Lucky for us, praise and respect are things Holly gives out freely and often.