Nominated by BranDee Savell, Chief Nursing Officer

I had a text from Mary Kay this morning letting me know how great Amber did with a behavioral health patient. Paraphrasing: [Amber did an amazing job with a psychiatric patient last night. She was very caring, rubbing the back of his neck and shoulders and patting him on the chest until he fell asleep. The patient had received medication to help, but it didn’t seem to faze him. The compassion that Amber showed him helped to calm him down and give him some peace.] This patient was seen for dementia and aggression, had been to our facility a few times, and for this visit he was in our facility for 2 days while our team looked for another facility that would accept him for proper treatment. These patients are very challenging because they are aggressive towards the family and staff. Medications are not always effective, and it may take several staff members to care for them. The staff must be on high alert with these types of patients because the patient can injure themselves or others. Often, they must be restrained or put in seclusion to prevent injuries. I appreciate Amber’s kindness and compassion towards this gentleman who most likely will not remember her or what happened. Compassion is a universal language, a simple act of kindness and compassion can break through barriers and make all the difference for our patients who are confused, hallucinating, anxious, and afraid. Thank you, Amber, for being an exceptional nurse who exemplifies our value of compassion!

“Our human compassion binds us the one to the other – not in pity or patronizingly, but as human beings who have learnt how to turn our common suffering into hope for the future.”
 – Nelson Mandela

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