Christine is the department cheerleader. No matter what is going on professionally or personally she is the one who lifts the spirits of her patients and her colleagues every day. It is not unusual to see her chair pulled up next to her patient’s stretcher with her arms on the stretcher chatting away with her patients about anything and everything. By the time her patient is recovered from anesthesia and ready to go home or to their inpatient bed she knows everything about that person, their family, interests, and worries, and they know all about hers.

Christine sings happy birthday to her patients who have just received a new kidney. She greets each one applauding them as they arrive to her bay in the PACU with, “Happy Kidney Day! Today is your new birthday.” Every time it makes you feel like you are at TGIF Friday’s when the staff come to your table to present you with a cake and sing happy birthday. Patients love it!

She makes glove animals for all special needs patients so that as they are waking up they are not afraid and have a toy to keep them safe during their recovery. Many times the patients are calling out her name to come to talk to them because they are bored or lonely even if she is not their nurse. But to them, she is the one that gave them the toy so she is their hero.

Yesterday, she made a glove elephant for a patient while she waited for her caregiver to get paperwork resolved. Just this week a patient complimented another nurse as she was being wheeled out to her unit. Christine stopped our conversation to ask if we heard what the patient said about her colleague. She wanted us to know the great job and recognition her colleague receive. I could go on with all sorts of stories regarding all things related to Christine and her cheerleading skills for all her patients and colleagues but I know you don’t have that kind of time to read everything. So for this Thank You is for all Christine does for her patients, their family members, and her colleagues.