I was admitted from the ER to med-surg for pain control as I awaited a surgical procedure. Due to there being no beds available on med-surg, I boarded in the ER until surgery. Samantha came on at shift change Monday morning and remained by my side until I was taken to pre-op. Samantha is the definition of an empathetic nurse. She never made me feel like I was a burden, despite my needs being high as I was in severe pain and was flowing through many emotions. I did not feel my pain was adequately being controlled, and Samantha consistently advocated for me, ensuring she would get the hospitalist to see me as soon as she could. During that time, she went out of her way to continue to make sure I was as comfortable as I could be, exhausting all comfort measures and non-pharmacological interventions that she could think of and knew of. She got pretty creative!

Samatha’s bedside manner reminded me that there is still hope in healthcare, as we all know, bedside care can be a huge source of burnout. I can speak on this as a nurse practitioner and a previous bedside nurse in acute care. The demands are there. Every time she came into my room, she had a smile on her face, and regardless of whether she was stressed or not, she did not show it. When I was in distress from pain, she remained by my bedside, assuring me she was there for me and that she had already requested the provider to see me to help manage my pain more adequately. I was being administered multiple medications at different times around the clock, and she made sure those were administered on the dot to help keep up with my pain control. She stayed by my side even at shift change and until I went to pre-op.

I hope she knows how comforting it is as a patient to have such a compassionate and caring nurse taking care of you. Being on the patient side of healthcare, you know there are other patients who are more critical than you and are in worse condition than you. Samantha validated my presenting condition and made me feel heard. Samantha was absolutely devoted to me that day, being my nurse, despite having other patients to care for besides me, she did a wonderful job!