Laura is one of the most caring, hard-working, going above and beyond for patients, workers that I have seen in years. She is an old school nurse who has not changed in her nursing career and taken the easier road, she is always that same nurse who works hard and goes out of her way to help patients. Many times, our coumadin clinic is forgotten in the cancer center, because it is not always directly related to cancer. Laura comes in around 7 am and sometimes doesn't leave until the late hours. A lot of this time is off the clock, so she doesn't get in trouble for overtime. She is going to make sure everything is done for every patient, and orders are in and are prepared for when the patients come in. She goes the extra mile to help these coumadin patients to stay compliant. I don't think many understand how coumadin can truly be a dangerous drug when patients are not properly compliant or take it right. She will make calendars for the patients to take home detailing exactly the dose and how many pills the patient is supposed to take. She will even call their caretakers at home to make sure they know what dosages the patients need as well.
An example of her going above and beyond is, she actually fills a patient's pillbox for a coumadin patient, because he is fearful, he may not do it right and trusts her to fill the pill calendar out for him, so that he is compliant with his coumadin and will properly take it. There are several coumadin patients with mental illness or some type of mental delay, and Laura goes above and beyond to work with these special patients to make sure they are compliant, which can be extremely difficult. She always makes sure she knows what medications these patients are taking, so she will know what medications will increase the effectiveness of coumadin and may put patients at risk for bleeding. I cannot say enough great things about Laura. These coumadin patients are like her family and second family. Laura is a top-notch, awesome nurse and has a caring and giving heart.