Terri was a charge nurse in the Pre-Op unit the day of my surgery. I went for my partial hysterectomy and was so nervous I almost didn’t have the procedure done. With the help of the front desk receptionist for the unit, Terri, the Charge Nurse for this unit on this particular day, came to speak with myself and my husband. She was so calm, so sweet and so understanding of my anxiety and offered to be my nurse along with the RN originally assigned to me.

This was my first surgery. I have extreme anxiety when it comes to hospitals, doctors, etc. Terri literally walked me through and helped prep me for every aspect of my procedure. She explained step-by-step what was going to happen what it was for and why it was happening something no one has ever done for me. When you have anxiety to the level I do while in a hospital setting, taking those extra minutes to explain the why is seriously life-changing. Terri went as far as explaining how anxious I was with the rest of the staff and alerting anesthesia of this as well, so they took their time with me. She was truly my angel during this extremely stressful procedure and process. If it was not for Terri, I would not have done this procedure and would have continued to have debilitating pain and anxiety over a procedure I needed to have done to help my overall health.

I will forever be indebted to Terri for the support, compassion, and empathy she showed me that day. I work in healthcare with nurses every day and Terri truly went above and beyond the call of duty that day. I was able to say thank you after my surgery to her, but I don’t feel a “thank you” suffices. I want her to know that she made a huge difference for me that day not only when it comes to trusting healthcare professionals with my care but for truly helping me change my life for the better because I went through this surgery. I want any future patients that are as scared as I was that day to know if Terri is present, they are in great hands! She is truly an Angel.

Thank you again, Terri, for all that you did for me that day, all that you have done for other patients, and all that you will continue to do!