My mom was admitted in the hospital with neutropenic fever possibly caused by pneumonia. After a few days in the hospital, she developed worsening shortness of breath and was subsequently placed on oxygen. While her vital signs were stable, she was not able to get any sleep and generally looked very uncomfortable. She was not even able to walk to the bathroom because she was having such a hard time breathing. This was nowhere near her baseline.

The night that Cassy became my mom's nurse was the same night that I had to go back to work (I work in RCRH too). As a nurse myself, I didn't know how I can handle the stress of my work and knowing that my mother is in the hospital in such discomfort. I visited my mom on my break and was relieved to find out that Cassy was her nurse that night. I have worked with Cassy before and knew that she is an excellent nurse. I let her know my concerns and told her that I might be calling her frequently for updates about my mom's condition. She was very accommodating and knowledgeable. A couple of hours later, she contacted me to let me know she has called the nocturnist and that my mom has been placed on a BiPAP and is now resting. I visited my mother again later that night and saw that she was finally sleeping comfortably.

The next day, my mom felt a lot better and was even able to walk around the floor. My dad was with my mom that night and he told me how Cassy barely left my mom's side and how she patiently explained everything that was going on to them. She even stayed to check on my parents after giving shift report to make sure everything is okay. Things went better for my mom after that night, and she went home a few days later.

I honestly never really thought about how much difference a nurse can make. Now that it has happened to us, I couldn't be more thankful for Cassy for being THAT difference.