During my wife's recent stay in the ICU at HCA North Cypress, we were nervously rocking along toward an eventual full recovery while being cared for by very competent and professional ICU nurses. I would like to highlight one of those nurses, Ashea Nelson, for her extraordinary qualities.

My wife was fortunate to have Ashea Nelson caring for her during one long night shift. Ashea caught my attention immediately as she began performing her duties that night. In fact, I remember telling the lead nurse that this lady was very impressive.

Ashea took tremendous pride in making sure my wife was comfortable, clean, and well cared for as the night progressed. From the very beginning, she displayed a commanding presence, leaving no stone unturned when it came to my wife's care.

I can't remember Ashea sitting down more than a handful of times. She was constantly tending to my wife throughout the entire night. She even used some of her own "tricks of the trade" to help bring down my wife's fever, using ice bags and cold cloth wipe-downs.

My gosh, I had to sit back and simply admire the way she absolutely dedicated herself to caring for my wife.

My family and I had taken to giving appropriate, respectful nicknames to the different nurses who cared for her during her ICU stay. It should come as no surprise that we gave Ashea the nickname "Master Sergeant." She was commanding, efficient, consistently attentive, and simply a notch above the rest, all while remaining personable and courteous.

Although my wife didn't fully realize it at the time, she was being cared for by the absolute best of nurses that night—exactly what the DAISY Award is all about.

My family and I sincerely hope that Ashea is recognized as truly the cream of the crop.