John Hooker exudes all the best qualities of a hospital like Morristown. He’s at the top of his game; he is giving and optimistic, and treats his patients with grace when they are frightened as they prepare for surgery. From our first introduction, which was before he started to care for my dad, John has been a great representation of kindness and respect. I originally thought his name was Roger, because someone else had called him that and he quickly responded to their question. John was assigned to start my dad’s IV and get his blood sugar, but before even entering the room, when he literally knocked on the wall and waited to be acknowledged, he then introduced himself and asked my dad for permission to enter his room. He showed such concern for those he’s charged with caring for to the extreme of being misnamed and answering without reacting or needing to correct his patients who are all in such a vulnerable position. I asked him about the Roger versus John mistake, and he explained how he knows when people are talking to him or asking for help and the need to stop and correct someone for not knowing his name was “counterproductive to earning their trust and reinforcing their comfort” (his words). He went on to explain that he knows patients coming through the pre-op floor are nervous or agitated and what they need from him. The care he can best provide, is to reinforce their confidence or control of a situation that may/usually feel like it’s spinning out of control.

John fully and willingly embraces his role of providing comfort in these situations and people don’t need to be made to feel bad, even for a moment, to think they forgot someone’s name or remembered it incorrectly. With great intention, John steps over someone calling him a different name and focuses on their effort to connect with him by using his name. It’s that space, where patients reach out with a first name, that John chooses to focus on and meets his patients exactly where they are. It’s this forethought that translates into John putting himself into his patient's shoes that make him a blessing at these times. It’s the lack of ego that makes easy banter in very intimate settings and creates and/or reinforces the trust Morristown wants to establish and repeat with each encounter. Thank you for making John one of our first encounters at the hospital.