Ms. Faith Madera was nominated by her co-worker. Ms. V shared one example of Ms. Madera going above and beyond for her patient, who was experiencing homelessness. On the various inpatient units, we experience veteran homelessness on many occasions. Our role as a direct care nurse at the South Texas VA is to ensure our homeless veteran population is provided exceptional care while addressing their multifaceted healthcare needs. As the saying goes, "No one who fights for this country, should have to fight for a job, a roof over their head, or the care they need when they come home.”

Ms. Madera came into work on her day off to deliver clothing for a homeless female veteran. On 4A Medicine, staff has a cabinet of clothing available for patients if they are discharging who do not have clothing to change into and most of the available clothing pieces are male. Ms. Madera cared for this female veteran on a prior shift of hers and knew her discharge was coming up and searched her closet to find various pieces for the patient. Ms. Madera’s small act of kindness brought the patient to tears as no one had ever done this for her before. Ms. Madera fostered an environment of caring to ensure the overall impact of providing clothing is connected to the patient’s well-being, having clean clothing, which can potentially lead to improved clinical outcomes. This is just one example of a scenario showing the compassionate and extraordinary care that she brings in daily to work.

Ms. Madera clearly demonstrates great dedication to duty, the organization, and the care of the patient. She continuously goes above and beyond with every patient and exhibits all the I CARE values.