Excellence is her middle name. In fact, I don't think she has a shred of slacker genes in her DNA; not when she is on the clock anyway. This nomination is a long time coming and I have reflected more than once about the absolutely top notch response time and compassionate care that is provided by Wanda on a consistent basis.
Daily, Wanda makes a difference, not only for the distressed patients whom she responds to when called but for the staff as well, who call upon her and her advanced level expertise. When the poop hits the fan, this is the code responder I most want to see arrive on my unit. I trust her assessments and judgments implicitly; something that does not come very easily for me, so, from me, this is really saying something.
Her leadership style is not only proactive; it is thorough, effective, and appreciated more than she knows. I have seen Wanda "in action" many times now and consistently, staff expectations are routinely exceeded. There is no doubt in my mind that the bar in which she judges herself must be held very high and for that I am grateful.
Wanda extended an invitation to my reluctant provider to "join the party" (the code white that I had called) and when the provider arrived; he was then cordially invited to sign all of the orders that she had already placed. The provider, however, remained reluctant to transfer my patient to a higher level of care, and in fact, talked of discharging the patient, but Wanda helped me to advocate that cardiac labs would be a most prudent course of action, even though "the EKG was fine", (per the provider). A teachable moment was had, and I have no doubt that I will run into less resistance from this provider the next time I feel the need to make this request because these labs proved to be grossly positive. Her patient advocacy skills were assertive, yet never aggressive. She not only took the time (at the very end of her holiday shift) to assure that my patient was set up for the chance to have the most successful outcome possible, but also took the time to touch base with me and my coworkers in order to explain her rationales for why she decided which course of action for this patient's care was warranted.
In the provider's defense, he did not have the luxury of being at the bedside to get to know the patient as thoroughly as I had come to know him in the few hours we were together. Doctors also do not have the luxury of honing a "nurse's intuition." Wanda validated that little voice in my head that stated something was not right and without a doubt that validation saved that patient's life that morning.