My 90 year old Mother came to the UVM Medical Center from her hometown in Newport, VT. She was assigned to Acute Care with a serious bleeding problem. She had the extreme good fortune of having RN Milton Rosa Ortiz assigned to her for the first 6 days. He took special care to make her feel comfortable and promptly explained to her the importance of her expressing her own voice to those of the medical establishment charged with her care, and also informed her of her full rights as a patient.
When she explained she had deafness in one ear he made sure the doctor who made the rounds was made aware of this and spoke so she could hear them. She was in quite a lot of pain at first and had to do PT for her hip and he always made sure she was adequately medicated so she would be able to participate. He acted not only as her care giver but also as an involved personal advocate.
I think that some of the qualities that make Milton a great nurse are inherent in his personality. He connects with the patient and the family in very natural, personal, and caring way. He has a sense of humor and his laughter is delightfully spontaneous. Since my mother and he are both very quick witted they developed a special rapport that kept her on her toes (so to speak) and brought joy to her every day. Injecting himself as a fully caring person makes it seem like a friendly home environment rather than a sterile medical environment.
Because he also made sure she knew what was going on medically she fully understood her choices. I am sure that all that he did contributed to her physical as well as mental wellbeing and was crucial in propelling her toward recovery. Thank you Milton!