Erin Fierro
March 2014
Erin
Fierro
,
RN
NICU
Saint Joseph Hospital
Denver
,
CO
United States

 

 

 

Erin provided not only exceptional emotional support to my husband and me during our baby's week long stay in the NICU (he was born prematurely at 34 weeks), but she also coached us in all facets of care for a preemie, and for our role as parents. She shared personal stories, encouraged us to be advocates for our son, and in general prepared us for the road ahead. She is truly an outstanding nurse and an exceptional person.

...

This is our first child, so being first time parents, let alone being first time parents in the NICU, wasn't something that we were prepared for. We met Erin the 2nd or 3rd day our son was in the NICU (it was a blur, so I don't remember exact days). Right away her care for our son and concern for us as his parents was prevalent. She basically took us, two parents who had NO CLUE what we were doing, under her wing, and walked us through pamphlets, set up a care conference for us to meet with the doctor, explained anything and everything about the NICU, about the process for our son, what it will take for him to get home, and what we could do as parents to help. It was the first time we felt like everything was going to be ok. Leaving our son in the NICU, but knowing Erin was his nurse for the day, made us both so comfortable. Erin jumped right in with my parents and made them feel welcome and answered any questions they had. That means a lot because our son's grandparents will be a huge part of his life and the fact that Erin included them and encouraged them to learn with us was such a wonderful thing. She really made us feel like we mattered and meeting our needs were the most important thing to her.

She also introduced us to the various doctors, lactation specialists, and other nurses so that we were comfortable with who was working with our little son. She sat down and went over step by step what to do and what to expect when we got home. Going home after getting such great 24 hour care from the best in Colorado is scary and overwhelming. Erin made sure we were comfortable with everything before leaving and if we weren't, she talked about it over and over until we were. She even came into the pumping room with me to discuss my concerns one on one. She wanted to make sure I was OK with everything and free to ask her anything without the influence of anyone else around. That went a long way with me and really showed how much she cared about my concerns about heading home.

When you talk about an exemplary employee, Erin is the textbook example. I think God knew exactly what he was doing when he paired our son and Erin up. It was so fitting that the day we left, Erin walked us out. It was almost a full circle moment.

...

Our experience in the NICU was excellent, minus the circumstances. We had such great care, the doctors and nurses were great, and Erin was just the icing on the cake. She was a joy to be around, made me feel comfortable both breastfeeding and pumping, and encouraged my husband and me to trust our instincts when making decisions about our baby. She made us feel special and important. Thank you, Erin! You are the best and will always hold a special place in our family and especially with our son.