This letter is in support of our nurse who cared for our family member, C, while in the hospital. When C was admitted, she had a terrible infection in her gut, complicated with Parkinson's disease; the infection waxed and waned, with days when she was herself and days when it looked like the infection might overcome her.
C was a childhood survivor of abuse, had self-taught herself to become a professional synchronized swimmer, and dedicated her life to the homeless community. As a healthcare provider, you might only have seen C's illness and limitations; for us, her family, we saw and still see a vibrant, intelligent person who has a warm and compassionate heart. C's younger brother, age 75, traveled from South Carolina to be with her and help encourage her recovery. Day after day he sat with her. All during this time, we were struck by how wonderful C's care was, and how one nurse, watched over her and us.
She called with daily updates, asked to be assigned to C's care when she was on duty, taught us to care for C, and was willing to challenge people in a supervisory role when she felt that they might have missed some relevant information for C's care.
Zhor asked C every time that she came into the room, how she was feeling, and on days she could not answer, she questioned why she was not rallying as quickly as she thought that she should and called the team to report what she observed. She would spend time to ask, "Was there a medicine that might be keeping her drowsy, or was there something that we could do to get her to awaken so that she would eat and take nourishment."
Zhor also asked of the family "Is there anything that I can do for you?" I had never had anyone ask that before, and while I was more concerned with C's care and recovery than my own comfort, her questions were ones that helped me to understand that treating the patient requires a holistic approach to treating the family as well.
When I was unable to be with C and Zhor was scheduled with her, I would know that C would be well cared for and that if anything arose, I would receive a call with updates and an outline of what steps the staff was taking to help C recover. As Zhor left on vacation and C stayed a bit longer, to recover from this 1-month long infection, we all met with Zhor to thank her and express our affection for her. We realized that our thank you would be complete if we could acknowledge Zhor, not just personally, but professionally and so it is with great pleasure that we nominate Zhor for The DAISY Award.