Emily Engelman is an extremely proficient, competent nurse. I can always count on her to hand off patients with all relevant clinical information, clean patient rooms, and no tasks left undone, but this nomination is not about Emily’s clinical expertise or her conscientiousness. She is truly deserving of a DAISY Award for her caring behaviors that restore dignity and happiness to her patients. I would like to share two recent examples.

We recently had a lovely, elderly patient who was on our floor for an extended stay, awaiting a discharge plan. I gave report to Emily, who pulled a pair of tweezers out of her pocket. She’d cared for the patient the day before, and the patient had shared that she had chin hairs but couldn’t groom them because she didn’t have tweezers. Without thinking, Emily arranged to get them for her.

Another gentleman on our unit for a long time had wild, overgrown hair and a bushy, unkept beard. After weeks to months, one day I came in,
and he was groomed, clean-shaven, and dressed in scrubs. He looked like a whole different person, and it was clear he felt like one, also. Emily had gotten him all cleaned up.

Emily is an expert nurse. I admire her, I trust her, and I love working with her. But when it comes to consistently investing in our patients’ wellbeing and helping them heal in mind, body, and spirit, Emily is an extraordinary nurse, and she truly deserves this award."