June 2009
Arlene
Cabral
,
RN
ICU
Adventist Health Bakersfield
Bakersfield
,
CA
United States

 

 

 

Daisy Award Winner for June 2009

Arlene Cabral, RN, ICU
San Joaquin Community Hospital
Bakersfield, California

1st Nomination


My daughter was here in the ICU on the Ventilator and in a direct coma. ArleneArlene cared for not only my daughter but for me and my whole family. Her excellent nursing skills and compassionate care. Were essential in getting all of us through this difficult time. Arlene washed and braided her long hair as needed to keep it from tangling. Even coming in on her day off at times. Every morning when she came on she would wipe down the room with Cavi Wipes to protect her from infection- even drawing her labs to keep the risk of infection down. The exceptional care she gave to my daughter is the same care she extends to all her patients.

2nd Nomination

I would like to nominate Arleneal, RN to receive the next DAISY Award. Arlene is an exemplary nurse. She is competent, passionate and unwavering under stress, which is our normal atmosphere here in ICU. Arlene is a CCRN, Clinical Nurse III, and also one of the few nurses in our unit who is 100% current on her competencies. As a shift leader, I know that I can assign any patient to Arlene with any acuity level, and she will take great care of that patient any day. This is a standard of care for Arlene and it is consistent. One particular thing that stood out to me was when one of our own ICU nurse’s 20 year-old daughter was admitted into the ICU with Adult Respiratory Distress Syndrome, and she was very, very sick and unstable. We all know it can be an honor while at the same time additional stressful and nerve-wracking to care for the loved one of one of our staff members. There is an added pressure to provide the best, most appropriate and competent care ever in a situation like that. This patient was so young, and also a new mother and we felt like she was “one of ours”. We were all heartbroken and nervous about her just being there, not to mention the one assigned to care for her. So it was appropriate for Arlene to take care of her, and during the worst days for the patient she gave outstanding consistent care day after day, and even requested to have the patient back again after a few days off. Arlene would do things like wash and braid her hair, and make sure her mother was eating and had everything she needed since she was at her daughter’s bedside around the clock. So going above and beyond the awesome bedside care she provided shift after shift, constant and unchanging under the added stress of how “close to home” the whole situation was is why I think those days could very probably be the best nursing of her career. Arlene exceeds the criteria for receiving San Joaquin Community Hospital’s next DAISY Award.