I am well acquainted with the medical profession. I am a pathologist. My brother is a physician. One sister is a surgical nurse. Four of my aunts and a niece are nurses. My best friend is a nurse. I have had several major and minor hospital stays. I have interacted with nurses in multiple and varied ways all my life. I can unequivocally state that Brittany is the best nurse I have ever known.

Brittany's intelligence, compassion, knowledge, empathy, professionalism, and ability to foster trust were evident in a short time. Nursing consists of two main aspects in my opinion. One is knowledge and skill in performing medical duties. There are large variations in ability in this area. Brittany is first in her class here. The second aspect of nursing is not learned but comes from inside a person, a natural gift. This gift shows itself in the smiles, support, compassion, empathy, encouragement, and time devoted to a patient so that they do not feel alone in their fear and misery. It is shown in the ability to bond with a patient, to care enough to get to know him and to foster the trust that carries a person through their pain and fear. Brittany has this gift and, again, sits at the head of the class.

My husband has never been hospitalized before or had any major injury. He has never been one to handle discomfort, much less real pain, with any sort of equanimity. He was absolutely terrified of both the surgery and the subsequent pain. Brittany wove her magic, and my husband liked her and came to trust and adore her in a very short time. Before we left, we both treasured her. She was our guardian angel, our Florence Nightingale.

You have asked for detailed examples of Brittany's excellence. In the best case, there would not be dramatic and terrifying instances to cite. There would be a compilation of small or common things that create a whole picture of excellence and caring beyond the call of duty. We have both. Every day that Brittany was working, things went smoothly and calmly. There were no personality clashes, no abruptness, no long periods of absence, no indifference. Brittany on duty meant just that. She was constantly checking on her patients. She fulfilled her medical duties cheerfully and very competently. In between those scheduled times, she would pop in to make sure all was well. I never saw her playing on her phone, sitting at her desk chatting for long periods of time, or otherwise neglecting her patients. We never had to go looking for her if help was needed. She had the experience to anticipate almost every need my husband had and would pop in magically to handle all with caring, laughter, and good nature. She talked to him about his condition and what to expect. She explained the test results to him. She showed him that he could do the things he needed to do. She helped him to face and endure the pain, not by ignoring or downplaying it, but by praising, teasing, and encouraging him. She treated him like a person of worth, not just a thing to be worked upon and then ignored. My husband didn't need any medical background to distinguish between a great nurse and a pale imitation.

One of the toughest things for my husband was his terror of needles. He struggled, screamed, and resisted. Brittany had him calm and accepting before very long. He usually had to be held down and forced. She had him sitting still and calmly accepting all the injections, catheter placements, and blood collections. I was amazed.

My husband was so terrified of the whole process that he wanted me to stay with him day and night. After a couple of days, he told me he felt safe with Brittany on duty so I could go home to shower and gather some things he wanted. While I was gone, Brittany noticed my husband was behaving oddly and was very confused. He did not know where he was or why. Brittany called in the doctors to evaluate him. They thought this delirium behavior was due to age, stress, and drugs. Brittany argued that it was not. She said she knew him and how he had handled things to date. She noted a disparity in pupil size and an eyelid droop. She persisted until a CAT scan was performed. I had returned by this time. I was frightened to hear him talking about crazy things. I saw the eyelid droop and the disparity in his pupils. The scan results were negative for stroke. Brittany and I continued to talk with my husband, and we still thought he had had a stroke. I argued and insisted that he had had a stroke, and Brittany backed me in the assessments and statements I made.

Finally, an MRI was performed and showed a frontal lobe stroke. I was so thankful that Brittany had supported me and added her voice to mine. She held her ground against the doctors and others who thought this was an old person's delirium due to stress and drugs. There are not many nurses who are smart enough, knowledgeable enough, and confident enough to stand by their convictions in the face of "greater" authority and still remain professional. You may be tempted to think Brittany was insubordinate or overstepped her authority. Never. She is the consummate professional who still is a great advocate for her patients. Brittany is a star.

A day when Brittany was off, my husband had another stroke and, later that evening, developed a high fever, supposed septicemia, and went into atrial fibrillation. I will spare you all the painful details of the long and acrimonious battles I fought without Brittany's support. I only bring it up because the difference in how things went was so extraordinarily different without her. I cannot tell her how happy and relieved I was when Brittany came back to work. We worked through these setbacks with Brittany's aid and emotional support.

My husband and I cannot do enough to thank Brittany for all the small and great things she did for us. I wish I could remember them all for you. She knows the great regard we have for her.