Nicole Procopio
October 2023
Nicole
Procopio
,
BSN, RN
Critical Care Float Nurse
Northwestern Medicine Central DuPage Hospital
Winfield
,
IL
United States

 

 

 

He and his long-time girlfriend had made mention of wanting to get married. From that moment Nicole was on it.
Nicole's compassion is something to be admired. She took care of a patient in his early 30s with a devastating diagnosis. This patient had been in the hospital more than at home with several admissions recently. This young patient had made the difficult decision to transition to hospital care. He and his long-time girlfriend had made mention of wanting to get married. From that moment Nicole was on it. She worked so hard to organize a wedding that night! All while keeping her patients safe and comfortable. Her ability to wear both hats well was amazing! I was not present when they got married but other coworkers described it as a "beautiful thing to witness." The patient had orders to transfer to the 4th floor, but the family requested the patient stay the night. The charges advocated the patient's stay and gave up the bed. This story is such a wonderful example of "Patients First" and teams collaborating together toward a common goal but centers around Nicole's care and compassion for both her patients and their families. She was able to mobilize the right teams to make a very young patient's last wishes come true. Around a month later the patient came in and passed away in the ICU. Nicole was his nurse which helped bring his family some relief in a devastating situation.