Tonight we had a 17-year-old female patient brought in after having an argument with her mom and her mom refusing her to come back home. The patient commented to Brandi that her mom would not even let her into the house to get clean clothes and that she had been wearing the same clothes for a few days.
Brandi inquired through the ED charge nurse and the Child Life Specialist if there were any clothes available for the patient. After finding out there was nothing in this patient's size Brandi left at the end of her shift and bought several changes of clothing for the patient using her own money. Brandi returned to the ED, added the new clothes to the patient's belongings and asked the staff to make sure that the patient got the new clothes when she left. Brandi also wrote a "Merry Christmas" note along with some words of encouragement for the patient and placed it in the bags with the clothes.
Brandi did all of this quickly and quietly without expecting any recognition. She just wanted to help give the patient a chance after having such a hard time at home. Although a couple of other staff members pitched in after learning what she did, Brandi did this on her own with no expectations from anyone else.
This is a perfect example of Brandi's giving nature that her ED co-workers see throughout the year as Brandi participates in organizing many of the department's charitable activities. It's just the kind of person she is.