August 2026 Honoree
Madison Abercrombie, BSN, RN
Let me start by stating that in my entire nursing career, I have never nominated a nurse for a DAISY Award. In healthcare, compassion can often get lost for many reasons. When it comes to comfort care, I have seen patients receive less than they need to truly understand what comfort care means. Madison didn't simply provide comfort care; she recognized the human being and family behind the patient and chose to be there when they needed her most.
I truly believe comfort care patients are the busiest, if not the busiest, patients on an assignment. The goal is exactly as it sounds: comfort.
I work in the Surgical Intensive Care Unit, and comfort care is familiar to us. We often try to keep our comfort-care patients in the same room until they pass; however, patient flow on the unit doesn't always allow that. This was the case when I met Madison. We had a patient with a catastrophic brain bleed who had been transitioned to comfort care a few days prior. Her family was lovely, and her husband did not leave her side for the several days she was in the hospital.
When we decided to transfer her to a new room, her husband was understandably concerned, as he only wanted the best for his wife. I gave Madison a report when the patient was transferred to her care, and it quickly became clear she was exactly the nurse this patient and her family needed. Madison recognized that the dying process was progressing and got a PCA pump, her first one ever, started to ensure that her patient could receive comfort medications quickly and effectively. This was a brilliant nursing intervention and one that is often overlooked with comfort care patients. Madison cared for her over the next couple of shifts. When Friday came and Madison's scheduled shifts ended, she said goodbye to the family, hugged them, wished them well, and went on her way.
After crossing paths with Madison and talking with her later, she told me that when she left the hospital that Friday, something did not feel right in her heart. The patient's husband told her his wife had been his best friend for most of 50 years, and Madison strongly empathized with their relationship. She called her own husband and told him that she didn't feel right not being there for her patient the following day when she was so close to passing.
Madison told me she is not one to pick up overtime, but she felt she needed to be there for this patient and her family. She called her charge nurse and asked if she could come in and care for them for one more day. When she returned, she was embraced by the patient's husband, and I know he was truly grateful that Madison had enough compassion in her heart to pick up an extra shift simply to help him and his family say goodbye with a little more ease. The patient passed away at 1930, right before Madison left for the night.
What Madison did for this patient and her family was a true act of love, compassion, and empathy. I have no doubt that this family will remember her forever. Nursing skills can be taught. Clinical judgment can be developed. But compassion in this form cannot be taught in nursing school. It is a gift, and Madison gave that gift to this patient and her family when they needed it most.
I truly believe comfort care patients are the busiest, if not the busiest, patients on an assignment. The goal is exactly as it sounds: comfort.
I work in the Surgical Intensive Care Unit, and comfort care is familiar to us. We often try to keep our comfort-care patients in the same room until they pass; however, patient flow on the unit doesn't always allow that. This was the case when I met Madison. We had a patient with a catastrophic brain bleed who had been transitioned to comfort care a few days prior. Her family was lovely, and her husband did not leave her side for the several days she was in the hospital.
When we decided to transfer her to a new room, her husband was understandably concerned, as he only wanted the best for his wife. I gave Madison a report when the patient was transferred to her care, and it quickly became clear she was exactly the nurse this patient and her family needed. Madison recognized that the dying process was progressing and got a PCA pump, her first one ever, started to ensure that her patient could receive comfort medications quickly and effectively. This was a brilliant nursing intervention and one that is often overlooked with comfort care patients. Madison cared for her over the next couple of shifts. When Friday came and Madison's scheduled shifts ended, she said goodbye to the family, hugged them, wished them well, and went on her way.
After crossing paths with Madison and talking with her later, she told me that when she left the hospital that Friday, something did not feel right in her heart. The patient's husband told her his wife had been his best friend for most of 50 years, and Madison strongly empathized with their relationship. She called her own husband and told him that she didn't feel right not being there for her patient the following day when she was so close to passing.
Madison told me she is not one to pick up overtime, but she felt she needed to be there for this patient and her family. She called her charge nurse and asked if she could come in and care for them for one more day. When she returned, she was embraced by the patient's husband, and I know he was truly grateful that Madison had enough compassion in her heart to pick up an extra shift simply to help him and his family say goodbye with a little more ease. The patient passed away at 1930, right before Madison left for the night.
What Madison did for this patient and her family was a true act of love, compassion, and empathy. I have no doubt that this family will remember her forever. Nursing skills can be taught. Clinical judgment can be developed. But compassion in this form cannot be taught in nursing school. It is a gift, and Madison gave that gift to this patient and her family when they needed it most.
Thank you, Madison, for your exceptional compassion, advocacy, and dedication to your patients. You truly make a difference.
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