My mother was admitted to the hospital very ill and no one knew what was wrong. She ended up being in the hospital for almost 2 weeks, and it was an extremely bumpy ride to find out what was making her so sick. There were many, many gloomy moments that left us feeling very distraught. Through all of that, there was one bright light who touched our lives in a way that I will never forget, and her name was Samantha Darpino.
Samantha exemplified what the definition of a nurse means to me. She was dedicated and compassionate with not only my mom but also the ones who visited my mom. She went above and beyond to listen to what my mom needed and came through every time. She made my mom feel like she mattered, that she wasn't "just a patient". She was her guardian. She took the time to brush my mom's hair, she asked her how she was feeling, she took the time to just talk to her.
Samantha's first interaction with me was me walking into the hallway frustrated and demanding to know who was in charge because we had seen multiple days of my mom being in the same state, in discomfort, not getting better. It was her first day back with my mom after being off for a few days, and I hadn't met her before. She came right up to me and let me know everything that had happened up until that point, what was happening next, and never made me feel like I was a bother when I asked any questions. She listened intently when the doctor came in to speak with my mom and took immediate action on any plans put into place. It took me a while to find the right words to put into place to write about my experience with Samantha as my mom's nurse because I wanted this nomination to explain exactly how much she impacted our lives in such a meaningful way.
As she was doing her job, it was clear that it wasn't just a job to her, that she truly cared about what she was doing and strived to do her absolute best every day that we interacted with her. She is truly someone who does more than required, and she does it with exceptional passion and integrity.
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Sam took my mother's care to heart and made her as comfortable as possible. I felt as if she really cared and often advocated for my mother when calling doctors and other departments around the hospital trying to make things happen. This care and concern made her staff a lot more comfortable. The best is that she would always take the time to listen no matter what the issue was. Genuine and caring are the best ways to describe Sam!