Nurse Carstens exemplifies nursing excellence by always striving to provide the highest quality patient care and collaboration with all members of the VAMC team. I realized that she is an action-oriented nurse as I witnessed her immediately step in and initiate improvements to our workflow and processes. RN Carstens continues to provide leadership in veteran-centered committees, the impact of patient care, and safety throughout the VAMC.

She consistently comes to work with a bright and optimistic spirit, ready to conquer any challenge that presents and motivates her team to do the same. RN Carstens is very respectful and treats all people, patients, visitors, and other employees with kindness and compassion. Every day she finds a way to go above and beyond for her team members and patients if she sees an issue, she takes the initiative to resolve it without waiting for a request. RN Carstens has no problem creating work orders for the entire building and coordinates in-services and training with new equipment or processes.

She is always the first person to volunteer to help whether in the primary care clinic, GYN clinic, flu clinic, etc., and will drop what she is doing to help. RN Carstens is an invaluable resource and always willing to share her wealth of information. If you need anything, she can help you; the rare times that she doesn’t know the answer, she knows the right person to call to resolve the issue and will assist you every step of the way.

RN Carstens is considerate of the well-being of her team members and always strives to ensure veteran safety and satisfaction. There have been numerous occasions that I have called on her to help with the flu clinic and she shows up every time without hesitation. One day as we were packing up the flu clinic, we encountered a lady on the elevator who started crying. Immediately, RN Carstens took action to console her. The lady had recently lost her husband and was at the VA to take care of his paperwork. She stated that coming to the VA after losing him intensified her grief. She also expressed that she had difficulty navigating the system and wasn’t sure about the paperwork she needed and whom to contact. RN Carstens provided privacy for the lady, offered prayer, assessed what she needed, and noted her contact information. When we returned to the office, RN Carstens worked diligently to determine what was required, followed up with the lady, and guided her through the steps she needed to take to finalize the paperwork. RN Carstens is an Extraordinary Nurse and encompasses the VA mission in all she does. She is a true DAISY Nurse.