Ala Etayem took care of me the last night I spent at the hospital after an almost two-week stay. I was in bad shape and spent most of the time coughing up and vomiting excessive amounts of blood and blood clots. I was also in respiratory distress as well as a lot of discomfort. Despite Ala having many other patients, he went above and beyond to make sure I was taken care of. He took the initiative of reading through my entire record to try and see if anyone was missing anything. He spent a lot of time by my bedside cleaning my mess, comforting me, and most importantly, advocating for me.
I had a lot of great nurses that cared for me during my stay, but I had reached a breaking point and Ala made me feel safe and that someone was really watching over me; that somebody cared. He spoke to doctors and charge nurses on my behalf and advocated so that my care team knew what was going on in the hopes of getting proper and adequate care. I was impressed and moved by Ala's professionalism, empathy, passion, and efficiency. Despite his workload, he was there for and fought for me at a time when I felt I had lost my fight.
Even though in the end I was still thrown out of the hospital too prematurely, I am forever grateful to Ala for going above and beyond his call of duty and restoring my faith in some of the medical system. Thanks to special nurses like Ala, I know not all is lost and there is still hope for the sick like me. Thank you, Ala!