I felt welcomed to the team as soon as I started in the PCU. I have worked dayshift and nightshift on this unit and can say that both shifts work so well together to help the unit run smoothly. When you get a new patient, or someone is decompensating everyone jumps in and helps. These are people who I know are there for me 100% of the time. From nurses to aides to UDCs this place feels like a family. This can also be seen in our high retention rate. I’m a proud member of the PCU team. 

***

PCU is one of a kind. Our team goes above and beyond for not only our patients but also each other. Our doctors, nurses, UDCs and nursing assistants all work as a cohesive unit. The staff is probably the most caring group I have ever encountered. Throughout the 5 years I have worked here I believe we may have the highest retention rate compared to other units and floors.  From being a nursing assistant to becoming a nurse my team here continues to grow with the love, kindness, and patience for our patients. I don’t see myself leaving her anytime soon because of the incredible PCU team we have. 

***

I am a part of the PCU team. I am proud to say I work with the very “best of the best.” These are dedicated, intelligent and genuinely concern about their patient’s well-being. I have worked here for over 30 years and can honestly say that PCU nurses are indeed the most compassionate and caring. 

***

We work so well together. Everyone is always there to help when you need it. From doctors, nurses, aides, and UDCs we are all working together to provide the best patient care possible. Whenever someone new comes to our unit., they always comment on how welcoming we are. We always strive to make everyone feel included, we have sung to multiple patients on their birthdays, spent here to make them feel special and just to go the extra mile. The PCU is the best. 

***

As a new hire, I’ve had a great experience with the PCU team. I have felt part of the team since day 1. Everyone works very well together, and everyone is viewed as an equal regardless of title. They have really made my transition effortless. 

***

I am using this nomination form to recognize the commitment of the PCU5 team at Geisinger Wyoming Valley. Under the leadership of Veronica Banyar and her excellent coordinators, I have observed them take any steps necessary to provide an optimal patient experience. In my role, they have been excellent partners in running with any initiatives that can move the needle for patients and/or their excellent staff. The staff of the PCU advocate tirelessly for their patients and contribute to a culture that highlights the diverse skill set of its team. Regardless of title, this team is composed of true leaders always going above and beyond for each other. They all celebrate individual accomplishments as a team and have run with a collection of different patient experience initiatives for the betterment of mobility, care transitions, and team building.

***

If you have ever entered Geisinger Wyoming Valley’s Progressive Care Unit, you will see a family. A family of nurses, doctors, UDCs, patient care technicians, food service employees, EVS employees and beyond. You may run into, Kristy Blinn one of our Golden Smile Award Winners, or one of our many DAISY Honorees like Jigna Patel or Chris Mennig. If you are a patient, your birthday will be celebrated with a song, decorations, a baked good from our cafeteria and we will make your birthday as special as we possibly can in a hospital setting. Ever see a team wear funny sunglasses to make a patient smile? My team does! Ever see custom-made signs and decorations to brighten up a patient’s day in a patient room? My team does that too! Ever see a team play music from the 1950s and sing with a patient because the patient wants to reminisce? Yup, that’s my team again! The team that I work with goes above and beyond, every minute and every day, to make patient experience and top-notch patient care their priorities. The PCU team works together as a family to accomplish everyday tasks, but we are also shoulders to lean on for each other when the going gets tough. During the COVID-19 pandemic, I saw my team both at their best and at their worst. They were resilient through the hard times and extraordinary through the good times, and from those experiences, I believe they became a stronger team and family unit. We have many team members that have continued to work in the PCU for many reasons, but two big ones are our teamwork and our dedication to patient care. I have student nurses that enjoy their experiences so much that they immediately apply to work in the PCU as a new graduate nurse and many of them say, our unit impacted them in such a positive way that they could not imagine wanting to work anywhere else. We are family. We help each other. No one turns away when a staff member needs help, even if it is someone from food service or EVS. I love where I work, and it is primarily because of the team I work with. They impact me in a positive way. PCU deserves this award for a wide variety of reasons, but if I had to choose one reason, it is because of the true family that the PCU created and continues to be. 

***

GWV PCU is the absolute best. We take the best care of our patients. We recently had a young patient (in her 20’s) who had a stroke. All of the nurses gave her the best care possible. She was treated to “Spa days”, we would play her favorite music and give her a bath and spruce her up! One of the UDCs made her mobiles and pictures to have in her room. This patient spent so much time with us. When she was finally able to be discharged, we had pom, poms, a banner an cheered for her. This is just one of the many examples of how much we care. 

***

The entire staff in PCU are team players who work wonderfully together. The UDC and Aids are the backbone of the unit. Nursing could not do their job without them. Our unit always make sure to celebrate everyone’s birthdays and accomplishments. The staff are friends in and out of work. I wouldn’t want to work with anyone else. 

***

To the best team in the GWV PCU, my sincere thank you for caring for my dearest grandpa, your love and tenderness are amazing. Your kindness and professionalism are so appreciated. 

***

On behalf of myself and my family, we’d like to extend our deepest gratitude to the entire PCU team for showing such warmth and excellent care for our father. Seeing such wonderful care being given to my dad (who in his days) provided the same great care to others being a surgeon. You are all a true blessing to our family. We admire the professionalism and kindness we received from this great team and wish you all much love. 

***

I may be biased but the PCU team is probably one of the best there is. From the amazing nursing assistants and UDCS to the nurses., our team is a tight-knit group of people. Our more seasoned nurses are great at taking new nurses under their wings to help and guide them into becoming the best they can be. We stick together through the tough times and are always there to lend a helping hand or shoulder to cry on. The nurses are close at work, and outside, which makes it easier to get through a long shift. Our nursing assistants are a vital asset to the unit, and we nurses could not do our jobs so well without their assistance. Many of our aids anticipate the needs of other patient and nurses. They are always there when we need a helping hand. Our UDCs are also amazing at getting us the supplies we need to provide the best care to our patients and simply enough to answer the phone and door. I think the PCU deserves the award because we are amazing. WE stick together through thick and thin, and I think we are sometimes overlooked as the shining stars that we truly are. Though we are a critical care unit and take care of many very sick patients daily we are sometimes overlooked. In addition, we often serve as the float pool of the hospital sending out multiple nurses every night and often during the day to help other units. We go with the flow and though we may complain at the end of the day it is about providing the best care to the patients and we always get the job done. 

***

Recently, as I was visiting my mother in the PCU, I witnessed angels celebrating a patient’s birthday. I assume as there was birthday music being played. All of the nurses on the floor stopped what they were doing, lined up and began singing Happy Birthday to a patient. They decorated the patient’s room with whatever they had available, these nurse on this floor are amazing. They have hearts so big and genuine; they care about every single patient on that floor. I’ve spent a lot of time in the hospitals over the years and this was the 1st time I witnessed such love and compassion. This unit of amazing nurses, NAs and other staff deserve this award not just because they did this and made a special day but because they are simply amazing. They also had a celebration for another patient on the floor. I don’t know what room exactly, but I can recall seeing decorations and pictures in the room. Although these nurses were busy with alarm bells ringing, Patients yelling and just the stress of their daily lives. They make time to make their patients feel extra special.  They are a cut above the rest.