I would like to nominate Nurse Kara Benz for a much-deserved DAISY Award. My Mom was a patient in the Critical Care Unit from February 21-24, 2025, and Kara was her night shift nurse during that time. My Mom died, and watching her deteriorate before my eyes was hard, but Kara stayed by our sides the entire time.

To say she gave exceptional care doesn't give the level of care she provided justice. Kara was empathetic, kind, patient, understanding, and committed. She did everything she could to help my Mom improve. She was consistently in her room giving her care or at the station outside her room updating her chart. Kara was never far from me and my Mom. Not only was she kind to my Mom, she was kind to me and my family.

I'm not sure my words are sufficient to explain how phenomenal a nurse Kara is, and for that, I apologize. What I will say is she deserves ALL the awards. The DAISY Award, an Emmy, an Oscar, a Tony, a Golden Globe, Perfect Attendance, etc.  Regardless, if she wins (which she totally deserves), a DAISY or not, please share this email with her and her manager/supervisor. Too often, nurses are not praised enough, and we want her to know that her efforts were appreciated.