This letter is about the dozens of acts of kindness by the people of Orange Coast Memorial. Karin who had the awful task of telling me that my husband had been moved to an isolation room; Mary who somehow arranged for various companies to deliver equipment and drugs and a nurse on time so he could go home; the ER people who found a regular bed for him so he didn't have to spend the night on a gurney and who didn't kick us out; the respiratory staff who showed me how to use and clean his nebulizer and who gave me the formulas for determining how many hours of oxygen was in a tank, the valet who would greet me each morning with a "Hello Mrs. T. how are you today?" The wonderful people who cheerfully washed and shaved and brushed him; the cafeteria staff who got me back in the building and on my way back up to him after I was locked out in the patio; Lori who unclogged his PICC line while reassuring me that it was not my fault and who thought of a way to relieve the pain to his spine; the food service people who sent any food at any time to tempt his appetite and who sent a special cake on his birthday; and Sandra who was there for his daughter when she had a complete meltdown. There were dozens more acts of kindness. His daughter and I tried to collect names and turn in "good guy" cards but we were so frazzled it was difficult to keep up. If we missed you, we apologize. Please know that your efforts were appreciated. So finally, this is about nominating one Nurse, Marina Chan, for the DAISY Award.

He was in isolation. He was calling himself "patient zero" and was terrified that he had infected his family and others. His daughter was terrified she was a danger to her students. We were all terrified about his health. He was feeling claustrophobic and the family was gloved and masked and gowned and "freaked out" ... then Marina came into the room. She was calm, efficient and informative. If she didn't immediately know the answer to one of our many questions she found the answer. She didn't act afraid of him. She touched him and talked to him and came in and out often to see how he was doing. She cheerfully dealt with his sister and brother who insisted on going in to see him multiple times. Marina didn't treat him as a diseased patient. She helped treat the disease while treating him and his family as people; easing our fears and discomfort. We believe Marina is an exceptional person because she separated the disease from the patient and treated both extremely well.