My 10-year-old son landed us right back into the hospital only one day after my wife gave birth to his baby brother via emergency cesarean section in the very same hospital... My son received a brand new "hoverboard" from his grandmother to help him into having a new baby in the house and figured he could use something new and fun to keep him occupied while our focus would have to be on our new edition for the next few months. He was over the moon. It definitely had the effect Grandma was looking for. Fast forward to him zooming full speed back and forth on it outside the house and eventually falling hard on the concrete in our backyard. He immediately came in complaining that his elbow hurt extremely bad and showed us the bump he received from falling. The bump swelled up to the size of an egg almost immediately, and after a quick icing and dose of Tylenol, we were headed back to the very same hospital my wife had just been discharged from after having an emergency C-section. Only this time, it was straight to the emergency room.

My son has never been admitted to the hospital in his life other than for his birth and he was very scared of what was going to happen there. I was extremely sleep-deprived due to the new baby and recovering wife, but I tried my hardest to reassure him that the worst was over and we were only going to the hospital to get X-rays and get patched up. Upon our arrival, we met Aaliyah, who got us all checked in. She was so nice and really made my son feel comfortable from the start (which I had no luck doing, I might add) and really put him at ease about the intake process, and what to expect next. I also happened to let her know I had been in the hospital with my wife for the last three days and she even took the time to congratulate me and identify with my new struggles. We thanked her and moved down to the waiting area to hang out until a doctor could see us.

As you know, it can take a bit of time to be seen, and after 2 1/2 hours of waiting, my son was starting to stress out again and became visibly upset. It was a particularly busy night for incoming trauma patients, and as completely expected in an ER, we were getting bumped for more pressing patients. Once we finally made it into the waiting room for the X-ray that needed to be completed, it seemed we had started the clock all over again. This is when Aaliyah found us for the second time. Aaliyah happened to walk by and noticed that my son was having a rough time. She took it upon herself to make sure he didn't end his night that way. She stopped and addressed my son with compassion and care to a level I had never experienced in healthcare before. Especially not in any emergency room I have ever been in, as most patients are rude because, well, it's an emergency, and people forget how to be human when they are in pain. Aaliyah noticed that my son was upset. She also realized I was extremely tired and took it upon herself to see if she could make us as comfortable as possible. She decided to take matters into her own hands and somehow got us into the X-ray room as soon as possible. It was such a delight to be in her care. She treated us like family and really made our night so we could get back to momma and the baby. I don't think she knows how huge of an impact she had on our lives in that short amount of time but she really made a terrible situation so much better.

I believe that is why she deserves this award. Not because of what she did but how she made us feel like she was there for us in such a short amount of time. It is easy to build a relationship in weeks, it is a whole other talent to make you feel like family within minutes. She is a true DAISY Nurse.