Our 16-year-old son was flown to OSF Saint Francis. He spent 167 days in Peoria. Most of this stay was spent on 4 Surg where our family was blessed to meet Melissa Finney. Melissa is the epitome of what a nurse should be and lived the OSF Mission. She took the time to get to know our son and made him feel at ease. She made him feel comfortable and cared for. Any time she cared for him, I could see the relief in his eyes when she walked into his room. She would listen to his concerns and would always think of different ways to help ease his discomfort. She always included him in discussions.
On days Melissa was not assigned his room she would always stop by to say hi and see how his day was. If she knew he was scheduled for surgery, she would stop by to wish him well and even left him a note when she missed him to let him know she was thinking of him. When the Doctors and Dietitian kept stressing he needed to eat more protein and we were struggling to get him to drink Ensure, Melissa brought in a protein drink with 30 grams of protein, that her son likes, for him to try.
While he was in the traction, Melissa and the housekeeper angled his bed one day so he could watch the snow out the window. Our son is a big Kansas City Royals fan. One day Melissa asked me if I would mind if she contacted the Royals organization to see if they would send an autographed picture or something to brighten his day. For her to consider doing this on behalf of our son brought me and my husband to tears. Melissa is the kindest, most caring person I have ever met, and she made my son's hospital stay more comfortable. I can never thank her enough for her kindness to my son.

Note: This is Melissa's 2nd DAISY Award!