As the nurse on duty the morning that a patient arrived in pain, Erickson-Zinter quickly picked up on their mutual passion for ice hockey - including 1970s Boston Bruins icon Bobby Orr - and seamlessly wove it into the patient's treatment.
"Although much younger than I am, Ansel engaged me in conversation about the players of my era and he knew so very much!" The patient recalled in her letter. "When my son was in the room, their efforts to help me melded into a cheering section where all things might be possible - even if my blood pressure was fighting to get over 75 over 37. That feat, because of the inspiration and perceptions of a super nurse who also guided my son to better ways to chat in uplifting ways, was my icing on the cake. Wow: terrific health care and hockey."
"It was the patient-interaction… that primarily led to my decision to become an RN," Ansel says. Right away he was reaping the rewards of "nurturing others to better health, the camaraderie of being part of a team that includes the patient."