I am a staff member and work at Ronald Regan UCLA. I thought it was an average workday when I began hemorrhaging profusely in my office. My colleagues had to assist me in going to the Emergency Department. This was an extremely embarrassing and traumatic event that made me very uncomfortable. I have never felt more vulnerable in my place of work.

I ended up undergoing a procedure in the OR. I was sent to the PACU for recovery. M.S. was my assigned nurse in the PACU. My first memory of this procedure was being woken up in the PACU by her gentle, kind voice. From the second I opened my eyes to meet her, Mary made me feel safe. She took a very uncomfortable situation and made me feel safe and well-taken care of. She did all the little things that made a world of difference. For example, I needed to use the restroom, so Mary assigned a CCP to ensure the restroom was open and held it for me. She did this to maintain my privacy as a fellow staff member.

Mary sat with me the entire time I was in the PACU so that I would not be alone. She made me feel as if I was hanging out with an old friend, chatting about life. She had the emotional intelligence to take my lead on how much I wanted to talk or not after this terrible event. When Mary went to take a short 5-minute break, she asked a CCP to keep me company in case I needed anything. Mary was kind, compassionate, and caring. She embodies not only CICARE but also everything a DAISY-recognised nurse stands for.

The care that Mary provided me made me proud to be a nurse at UCLA. She leads from the heart, and it shows that she loves her work as a PACU RN.