My father-in-law spent almost 8 weeks at RMH, he was admitted with Covid pneumonia and he ultimately spent the last few months of his life in the hospital. Olga was one of the night nurses that he saw on a regular basis. As with all Covid patients he waxed and waned sometimes he was downgraded to medical other times he was on progressive care, I think he might have even spent the night in ICU. His favorite unit was Medical because of Olga. He told us he felt comfortable and confident and Olga’s ability to take care of him. She went above and beyond what several nurses did by checking on him more frequently than expected; she brought him treats on occasion, which I know he loved. Olga was the reason he got a sound night's sleep. He told us that if it weren’t for her, he wasn’t sure he would have gotten any sleep at all for fear that something bad would happen while he was asleep. Olga brought in a baby monitor so that she could hear him as he often knocked off his mask at night, and by the time he realized it was off, his oxygen saturations were dangerously low. She brought comfort to him, made him feel comfortable, and made our entire family feel confident in the care she provided. As a nurse leader for another hospital system, I was impressed with the only time I ever met her I did not go into the hospital until the night he died because I did not want to take away visitation from my husband or brother-in-law during Covid visitation restrictions.

The night my husband got the call that his dad had taken a turn for the worst, it was Olga who called us. My husband called me and said he could tell by listening to her that she was also crying. She called to tell him that he was on a BiPap and had taken a sudden turn for the worst. We felt like she took this just as seriously as our family did. When I got to the hospital, I was the first of our family there. Olga met me in his new room, where they had transferred him because of the level of care he currently needed. She immediately made me feel comforted, and I was sad that she was not going to be his nurse last night. While we were waiting for my father-in-law to pass, Olga came down to check on him. He wasn’t even her patient anymore, but she cared enough to check on not only him but our family as well.

He ultimately passed away with all of his family around him without pain and at peace. Olga is a large part of the reason we felt confident in RMH's care. She is an exemplary example of what every nurse should be. This is coming from an emergency room nurse, and I tend to be a little hard. There was no way to maintain that with Olga around. We will forever be grateful for the care, compassion, and kindness she showed not only to my father-in-law but to our family as well. Thank you are not even the words to describe what you’ve done for our family. We will always remember you. I’m sorry this nomination took so long; it’s taking a while to gather my thoughts to be able to say the right things. And even a month later, I still can’t find the words to express what she has done for us.