From the moment I was transferred to my oncology hospital room from the emergency room, Megan was very calm and comforting to me and my wife, who accompanied me.  Megan helped my wife and I feel secure and confident with her care after we had just spent all day in the ER doing diagnostics tests and getting pain relief.  She got me checked into my room, and I could see and feel that she was going the extra mile to help me settle into my new room.

Megan took her time to patiently make sure all my needs were addressed, and my concerns were answered.  Addressing my needs and answering my questions is challenging because I often feel I ask more questions than most patients.  Likewise, we had many concerns because the pain that brought me here was a new symptom in my Stage IV pancreatic cancer journey.

Megan made me feel like I was her only patient, despite me knowing she had many patients and a challenging workload.  She listened to me with her heart while showing great empathy.  She understood me as a whole being and noticed that I had not eaten supper yet.  In my hectic day at the emergency room with my intense pain, I had not yet noticed that I had not eaten lunch, much less thought about dinner.  Megan recognized my needs even before I did.

Megan made sure that I called the cafeteria before they closed for the night.  When I reported that when I called I received the cafeteria voice message, she quickly gave her insight that she doubted my supper order would be filled based on her experience.  Megan then went above and beyond the call of duty to ask what kind of food I liked, and she found me two turkey sandwiches to help save me from late-night hunger pains.  All this care and attention caused her to spend more than her allotted time with me and showed me she was putting my needs above her own.  Her background knowledge of the cafeteria phone ordering system and her pursuit of the food options I had on the nursing floor showed she was passionate about providing me with the best holistic health care available.  She could have easily walked out of my room much earlier and pushed my need for food upon the night shift nurses.

Megan also showed me compassion by paying close attention to the emotional and psychological needs of both myself and my wife.  Emotionally I needed a space in which to share my stressful story of my day spent getting to this room.  Psychologically, she knew my mind needed gentle and thoughtful care.  This was shown in how she constantly dimmed my room lights at my request.

She was also very attentive and thoughtful in the way she put back what she disturbed around my room while doing my great care.  She did a lot of little things that add up to BIG care.  She did a lot of things that fall under the idea of basic common courtesy that you expect from a friend, even though I know she was a busy nurse.  She treated me with love and attention you would expect from a friend, even though we were in an often stressful professional environment.  In short, she treated me as she herself would like to have been treated, and it did not go unnoticed. 

For example, if she disturbed my sheets in the process of accessing my port, she always put my sheets back and made sure to tuck me in.  Or if she moved my tray, she took the time to reposition it back to where I had carefully placed it so I could reach all my creature comforts like phone, laptop, Chap Stick, etc.  For example, if she removed my sock to examine my feet, she also took the time to help me put my sock back on, especially as it is hard for me to bend over and reach my feet because of pain.  Or another small example of her expert care was that she always made sure to return my door to a shut position when she left because she knew I wanted a quiet and dark room.

Overall, Megan has extraordinary skills and kindness that I wish I could bottle and capture so every nurse could have.  Throughout my health challenges, I have been cared for by many nurses in my lifetime, so I believe I am extra qualified to nominate Megan.  She possesses a certain blend of professionalism and compassion that is part art and part science.  Her excellence is something that is hard to describe at times, but I think we all know it when we see it.  I have seen above and beyond excellence in Megan, and I would like her to be recognized for it.  Thanks