Sara Vaal
May 2014
Sara
Vaal
,
RN
Medical
Memorial Hospital and Health Care Center
Jasper
,
IN
United States

 

 

 

Sara always goes above and beyond to ensure our patients and their families are receiving the best possible care. Sara puts her patients at the forefront. When she enters a patient's room, she is in that moment and focuses completely on her job.

A time I vividly remember of Sara giving her most was when she cared for a visually impaired young patient on the unit. It was snowing outside and as people were chatting about the pretty snow, Sara recognized that the patient could not "see" the beauty. Sara went outside and built a small snowman. She put all the necessary pieces on the snowman - eyes, nose, scarf. Sara took her snowman into the patient's room and held it so the patient had the chance to touch and "see" the beauty. While the mother and most of the staff were in tears, Sara sat with her patient to make sure they enjoyed the experience.

Sara is quiet, but loud. She is soft-spoken, but when she speaks, people listen because they know her words mean something. When she speaks, people follow. She is always positive and helps shift not-so-positive-situations in a positive direction. She has not been taught to lead but has always been a leader.

Sara truly lives the mission of "Christ's healing mission of compassion empowers us to be for others through quality and excellence." Sara provides excellent, quality, care to her patients, their families, and her co-workers. I believe Sara deserves this award because she is a great role model. Sara truly exemplifies what Memorial looks for.