Krista not only respects each trauma patient, but ensures each patient maintains their dignity and privacy during such a tough time. She does this in a very kind and honest way. She has passion for caring for trauma patients and this can be seen in her everyday practice.

Trauma patients tend to be complex patients to care for. Oftentimes, these patients present to the hospital shocked by their recent traumatic event. Physically and emotionally these patients need careful attention. Krista not only goes above and beyond with caring for their physical needs, but works quickly to address their emotional needs as well. She works hard to notify their families promptly, which sometimes can be a very difficult task if a patient presents to the hospital without identification. Krista also coordinates with Children's hospital if a patient's child is injured.

The collaboration Krista has with the trauma team is impressive. Because trauma patients can be so complex, many surgical services tend to follow the patients throughout their hospital stay. Krista's ability to communicate with all the surgical services is unparalleled. She works hard with all of the specialties to establish a cohesive and holistic plan of care. She also updates families on this plan to ensure they stay abreast of all the information, which can be difficult when multiple services are involved. She does this tactfully, respectfully, and will great integrity, as sometimes patient outcomes may be grim depending upon their injury burden.

Krista is an outstanding example of professionalism and leadership at Parkland. She is extremely caring and supportive of patients and trauma team members. She continues to take on leadership roles in the department and within Parkland as a whole. She single handedly orders all of our Parkland Trauma apparel! She displays excellence in nursing every shift she works.

Recently, multiple members of a family were injured in a motor vehicle collision. Many of the family members required admission and Krista, thinking outside of the box, realized the likelihood of the patients getting assigned on the same floor, was rare. She called ADT and coordinated their room assignments next to each other. The family was incredibly grateful because then they were able to support each other physically and emotionally, be present during physician rounds, and visitors were able to see all family members with ease. Krista truly cares for these patients and thinks in their best interest. If she did not consider these needs, the patients would not have had such a pleasant stay at Parkland during such a difficult time for them.

Krista recently stayed late after her shift to comfort a woman whose husband had died. This patient was incredibly grateful for her support during such a difficult time. The example of Krista organizing the family in one room reflects Krista stewardship. In order to save physician and staff time, she helped facilitate the family assignments in one room. This allowed physicians, nursing, and other medical specialty rounds and updates on plan of care to happen quickly, cohesively, and with all family members involved.

As a fellow trauma nurse, it is a pleasure to work with her during our shifts together. I know I can rely on Krista's leadership as well as nursing skills when we are both working to save a trauma patient's life. Caring for trauma patients can be stressful and intense. She has a way to make the situation calm and focus on patient care. She is not only a fantastic nurse, but an incredible person.