On December 27th, my 1 year old granddaughter, K, was brought to Bronson's Children's Hospital with pneumonia. She was brought in by the Life Baby Bus from Sturgis Hospital. We were here until Tuesday morning, December 29, 2015. Over the few days we were here, we met many nice people, but there was one young lady who went above and beyond the service I expected, Ashley Lucha. She worked the night shift in the Children's Unit. I could tell when we met her that she had chosen the correct career path. She talked to K and was smiling, caring and compassionate. K responded to her and the two hit it off well.
The main incident why I am nominating her was the particular way she responded to an incident on the morning we were to be discharged. She was doing her final walk through and maybe even close to being on her way out the door. She stopped in to wish K well and she noticed I was working with K in the crib. K's little leg was caught between the rails of the crib and the mattress. This would normally put a child into stress, but as soon as K saw her buddy, Ashley, she was all smiles. It was like K knew that Ashley would be able to get her through this dilemma. And not to let her down, Ashley talked to K as she very calmly rubbed lotion on her little leg and set her free. K of course gave Ashley a hug, which Ashley reciprocated. It was the neatest thing ever to watch.
What could have been a crying nightmare for both K and me (as I was exhausted), turned into a great way for the two of them to get 5 more minutes together. Ashley could have passed the buck to the oncoming nurse, or to a PA, but she handled the situation professionally and with care. For going the extra few steps that made a day a little brighter for a one year old, and her very tired grandmother, thank you. Ashley was absolutely wonderful.