Jonathan Aguilar
May 2025
Jonathan
Aguilar
,
BSN, RN, PHN, PCCN
6 North (PCU)
Cedars-Sinai
Los Angeles
,
CA
United States

 

 

 

What makes Jonathan stand out is that he treated us like partners and provided ample information prior to any treatments.
My father had the privilege of being taken care of by Jonathan Aguilar. What makes Jonathan stand out is that he treated us like partners and provided ample information prior to any treatments. He didn't just administer treatment and say, "It's good for you, trust us," he'd explain treatment in a logical way that made sense to us, who don't have a medical background.
One particular situation that particularly sticks out in my mind is when my father failed his swallowing test. We had three options: NG tube, starve, or disregard the test results and continue eating. He provided information, explained the process for inserting the tube, told us it would not be a major source of discomfort, and helped us weigh the pros and cons of each course of action. We ultimately opted for the NG tube, which looking back on it, was the correct decision because his subsequent video swallow test showed that fluids were ending up in his lungs when he swallowed; we initially had wanted to continue eating (because we weren't certain how accurate the test results were), which would have caused more complications.
His explanations would often be pretty accurate, for example, following the fluid drainage from his lungs, my father was in pain. Jonathan said the pain would soon subside, and sure enough, the pain subsided a short while later. This helped further strengthen my father's trust and faith in subsequent instructions and suggestions.
He's also one of the few nurses who actually took my father on walks. Jonathan had suggested taking my father to the sky bridge that links Saperstein and the North Tower because it has a great view; that really lifted my father's spirits that day and helped motivate him to walk more frequently if he could see the outside world.