My husband has ALS and was diagnosed 2 years ago. We had recently been admitted to this facility for a mucus plug that resulted in my husband needing a tracheostomy. He was a medic in the military, and we knew this disease process would be fast and it would be debilitating. My husband, luckily, has not been admitted into many hospitals since his diagnosis due to around-the-clock care at home. We had been in the hospital for almost a week, and in that week, we had all wonderful nurses who took wonderful care of my husband. However, Renee stuck out to us for many reasons.

One, she was the only nurse who figured out my husband's ways of communication with the little gestures he was able to control. She made a "get to know me" paper and hung it up so others would know him also. Renee also asked questions about his communication device and asked us to walk her through how to calibrate it each time they turned him. This alone was a tedious task, and she did it every shift she worked with him. She is so patient, kind, and giving. I never worried if my husband was in good hands while she was his nurse, and he didn't either. He lit up and actually smiled when she came in every morning. They had their little games, and she got to know him on a level that no other nurse had. To her, she is just doing her job. But, to my husband and I, she was providing individualized care above and beyond her "job." She didn't have to learn how to do these things or how he preferred to be cared for, but she did.

We know the end result of this disease, and Renee took the extra steps to ensure we had support while in her care. She said he was her first ALS patient. I wish she could teach compassion, humility, and patience to others who care for those with ALS because she did all this and more. We are forever thankful for her. Oh, and one more thing...Go Blues!