One such example of commitment to serving Veterans and their families by honoring the VA’s mission was when we had a Veteran transferred from the step-down unit in the middle of the night, around 2am, to the MICU due to COPD exacerbation. His wife accompanied him to the ICU. His wife was legally blind, and the husband was the primary caretaker. The veteran’s condition was deteriorating, and he needed a higher level of care where he was placed on a BIPAP machine to maintain his oxygen levels. Ms. Calderon took the veteran's wife under her wings. She informed the charge nurse that the wife needed support staff to be taken care of. The charge nurse escalated this to the administrator on call. There was no support staff available during that time period. Special permission was requested by the charge nurse for the veteran’s wife to stay in the room. Ms. Calderon ensured that the wife was safely escorted to the restroom, provided all her hygienic care, and made sure she was safe in the room along with her husband. She even went as far as to provide blankets, comfortable chairs, and more. In the morning, arrangements were made by the social worker for the veteran’s wife to be picked up by his sister. The veteran’s sister was so thankful, stating that Ms. Calderon not only took time to care for her brother but also for her sister-in-law during the overnight watch.

Another example of Ms. Calderon demonstrating the I-CARE values is when she exhibited Advocacy by truly focusing on serving the Veteran. During this pandemic, due to an influx of patients or when there was not enough staff because they were sick, Ms. Calderon, as one of the tenured staff, was very supportive during the staffing crisis, working with new staff on orientation. Her knowledge and experience were shared among the staff, and together they divided and conquered, caring for our veterans safely.

Another example of Ms. Calderon demonstrating the I-CARE values is when she showed commitment to serving Veterans and their families by honoring the VA’s mission. The MICU had a female Veteran who was admitted with COVID. When I was doing my daily rounding, the Veteran expressed that Ms. Calderon is a Florence Nightingale nurse because she is so special. I asked the veteran what the reason was. She stated that during her busy shift in the ICU, "Ms. Calderon took time to wash my hair. I couldn’t have family come visit me, as I was COVID positive, and I wanted some coffee as well, and Ms. Calderon went and got me a cup of coffee. This made my day, and I felt I was attended to and given first-class treatment."