I had a patient in the Medical ICU. She is what we call a "frequent flyer." She is very young, and comes into the hospital in DKA often. She does not have much family support, and is always here alone. She very tearfully asked me that morning if we might have any pants for her to wear. She had soiled herself on arrival, and she needed some clothes just to make her feel a little more human. Our gowns are also very large on her as she is very emaciated. I went to the gift shop and bought her a TMC shirt but could not find her any pants. I remembered Jamie had started a clothing closet for ER patients that come in without clothes. I reached out to her and asked if I might be able to search for something for my patient. She did not hesitate to respond and met me to take me up there and personally help me search for something for my patient. Well, the pants were all too big. I told her it was fine, and I would continue my search outside of work the next day. She said, "I have a bag of clothes at home I've been meaning to bring up here. I think there's a pair of tights in there that might fit her. I'll run home quickly." I told her she didn't have to do that, but she insisted. About an hour later, she reached out and said she had some clothes. I was busy with in-patient care, so she brought them up to the ICU for me. She had a pair of pants and 2 T-shirts. She insisted that my patient have all of the clothing and even offered a nice leather jacket for her to have when she was discharged! I took the two shirts and the pants, as well as the T-shirt I had purchased for her to my patient. She was so grateful she cried. She put the pants on immediately and put on one of the shirts. She carefully folded the other two shirts and placed them in a patient belongings bag.

In this line of work, I think sometimes we forget the impact of these gestures. Our patients often have no control because they are so sick. They can easily feel some of their humanity slip away as we treat them. Jamie helped my patient regain some of her humanity on this day, and I know it made a huge difference in her life in that moment. Jamie not only shows compassion, empathy, and true leadership in her own ER world. She also spreads it wherever she goes. For this reason, I would like to nominate her for a DAISY Award. She goes above and beyond the call of duty, and I know my patient was so very grateful for it. The following day…I just saw Jamie, and she inquired about my patient. She said if she was still in need, she had some shoes that might fit her from the clothing closet. She even had the compassion to follow up.