Brittany is a very special nurse. She is always going out of her way to provide personalized care to the patients. Recently we had a very young patient that was suddenly bedbound. Her long hair had become very tangled and matted. Brittany worked for an hour trying unsuccessfully to detangle it. Her matted hair along with her new diagnosis had left this young girl very depressed. She was from out of town and did not have friends or family to come visit.

Brittany came in on her day off and enlisted the help of her hairdresser friend to give the patient a fresh new haircut. Brittany was so excited to be able to help this patient. I talked with the patient the next day and she lit up talking about her new haircut. It may seem small; after all it's just hair. What Brittany did was so much more. She gave that girl back her dignity. In my opinion, this level of going above and beyond is the very definition of extraordinary care.

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I have been a patient here on 9 West Rhodes for 11 days and from the first moment I met Brittany she has influenced my care in a positive way.

Since I was admitted I have experienced a variety of emotions all of which Brittany has helped me through. Her very presence is calming even when she is not assigned to care for me. I feel a sense of comfort just knowing she is in the building. It is very evident that she is a nurse who cares for people with her whole heart and loves her job. When she cares for me I know I don't have to ask for anything. She is very proactive is assessing/giving pain medicine, discussing my plan of care, and going over lab results. I could go on and on about how she performs her job duties at a level that exceeds most but what has really changed my stay is her compassion to go above and beyond.

When I was admitted my hair was very long and had a really large knot in it. She went to the gift shop and purchased conditioner and worked very hard to try to get the knot out. With little to no success I told her to just cut it, that I didn't care what it looked like. She arranged for her and her friend (who is a hairdresser) to come in on their day off and for her to give me a real haircut at no cost. I never expected for anyone to do that but am so grateful that she did.

Brittany also purchased nail clippers and helped me cut my fingernails when I was unable to do so. Brittany makes me feel like I am her only patient when she is with me and that alone is enough. I feel very fortunate to know Brittany and know she is 100% deserving of this award.