Bob is a truly genuine person and a caring nurse who gives of himself daily to our behavioral health patients. He provides them with support throughout the day by facilitating group therapy and offering education classes, which is his job... But even when he is not running a group, he addresses their spiritual needs and gives them hope when many of them are at the end of their rope. He spends individual time with those who have all but given up and quietly builds their self-esteem by giving them tools they can use to move forward in life.
Every day, Bob gets out his peanut butter and jelly sandwich and sits down with the patients as they eat lunch together in our dining room. He meets them right where they are in conversation and throws in his own comments as if he were one of them. The patients love him and often provide me with written appreciation for his interaction with them.
Bob is the best verbal de-escalator that I know. He is immediately present when he hears a patient is becoming loud or losing control. In a calm and soothing voice, he directs the patient to share any concern and then he just listens and makes them feel heard. So often, this is all that it takes to calm someone down. The staff feel very supported and safer when Bob is around. And Bob... well he just seems to be doing his job in a most unassuming way, putting our patients and their needs first.