Ashley Alessi
September 2023
Ashley
Alessi
,
BSN, RN
6NS CVICU
Banner University Medical Center - Tucson
Tucson
,
AZ
United States

 

 

 

To Ashley, it's just another day on the unit, but to her patient and the family, she is a hero. This is not the first time Ashley has saved the life of a patient, nor will it be the last.
Ashley is one of the most compassionate and highly skilled nurses I have ever known in all my years of nursing.  She is a ray of sunshine and always has a warm smile on her face despite whatever may be happening on the unit.  She is an advanced ECMO specialist, can do ALL of the ICU things, and is one of our strongest charge nurses.
 
Ashley recently assumed care of an incredibly sick patient who had arrived just before shift change via air transport.  While gently turning the patient to maintain skin integrity, the patient coded.  Ashley called a code and started administering high-quality chest compressions within seconds of identifying that the patient did not have a pulse.  She asked for a stool so she could ensure proper positioning in order to provide optimal compressions.  She was in her element, and it was clear that she knew exactly what to do.  Her compressions were impeccable. Staff responded to help run the code, and the patient achieved ROSC within minutes.  She then carried on with her day, providing outstanding nursing care as though nothing had happened, but something had happened, something incredible...  she literally just saved the life of this patient. 
 
To Ashley, it's just another day on the unit, but to her patient and the family, she is a hero. This is not the first time Ashley has saved the life of a patient, nor will it be the last.  After codes in the ICU, we quickly move on to the next nursing care for our patients and never really take the time to process things, to recognize incredible teamwork or the fact that a life was just saved. It seems to be commonplace, but it's not. It's a big deal. I'm nominating Ashley not only for her numerous years of 'big deal' nursing but also for the outstanding everyday nursing that she has provided and continues to provide for her patients.  
 
Ashley makes a meaningful difference in the lives of her patients every day.  She loves being a CVICU RN and always goes the extra mile, ensuring that her patients are well taken care of, as well as their families. They will never forget her or how well she took care of them.  
 
She is also an amazing role model for our nurses and helps develop their nursing practice by leading the way. I could go on and on about how amazing Ashley is and how deserving she is of this recognition.  We are so so very fortunate to have her on our unit and patients are so very blessed to have her as their nurse.  Ashley is simply a lovely human and a treasure.