Rachel is everything you want in a nurse and so much more. She is the definition of compassion and selflessness. She ALWAYS goes above and beyond for her co-workers and her patients. It is hard to put into words how much of an asset she is to the trauma ICU. She treats every patient as if it's her own family member and cares for her co-workers as a mother would. She purchases activities such as puzzles, games, coloring books to make sure our long-term patient or families have something to keep their minds busy. She brings in coffee and treats for staff to keep us going. She always helps anyone out in need no matter how crazy her day might be. It's hard to imagine work without her. She is someone to look up to and someone I would want caring for me or my loved ones.
I recently worked a shift on E pod with Rachel. She cared for a patient who had been in Trauma ICU for about 10 days with a head injury. She took several hours out of her day to give him a spa treatment. She helped him shave his beard, washed his hair not just once, but twice to get EEG glue out, gave him a good bath, got him to a chair for the first time since admission, took him on a ride through the hall because he was bored, and even played his favorite music for him. The following shift came in and didn't even recognize the patient from the night before. The patient perked up so much and was the most interactive he had been the entire hospital stay. It was so humbling to watch her work with him and have so much compassion for everything she was doing, even something as simple as a bath.