I would like to recognize 3rd floor nursing with The DAISY Team Award for their work on the COVID care unit during the COVID-19 pandemic. As the newest unit in the facility, the 3rd floor nursing staff is honestly pretty green. Casey Cochran, Maylen Tejera-Frometa, Grace Sullivan, Courtney Newell, Ashley Ortega, and Summer snipes are all nurse residents, which means they are in their first year as new Registered Nurses. Courtnay Perryman and Erica Kimbrell are not new graduates, but they are in their first year with Colquitt Regional Medical Center and their first year in acute care. Our more seasoned nursing staff are Charlie Barnett, Niki Landrum, Beverly Dolweck, Lindy Sanderson, Nora Morris, and Josh Moody; but, as you can see, they represent a relatively small proportion of the nursing staff. As the department evolved to become a COVID care unit, I worried that some staff may decide that it wasn't worth the risk and leave. Like everyone else, these nurses have babies, spouses, parents, and grandparents that they don't want to expose. Meanwhile, they're being asked to work 12+ hour shifts behind plastic barriers with known COVID-19 patients.
My anxiety about the staff's commitment couldn't have been more misguided. These nurses rose to the occasion in ways that couldn't have been predicted. They adopted the role of caring solely for COVID-19 patients without missing a step. I have watched them as weeks go by with amazement. They spend hours dressed in layers of PPE, assessing patients, answering questions, comforting the confused, and passing medications. They come out of the COVID cohorts with pressure creases from the N95, and hair plastered to their face with sweat, and find something to laugh and joke about with the team. They risk their safety all day, every day, and shrug it off as just doing their job. The most surprising thing has been the spirit of service that they maintained. These nurses are the reason that year after year Americans name nursing as the most trusted profession in the United States. They are making every effort to ensure that their patients receive the same level of compassionate care that they would if they weren't in COVID isolation.
I have attached a letter a patient left in his room this week. It perfectly encapsulates- more eloquently than I ever could - the kind of care that these nurses are providing. When I read his letter I was reminded of a scripture in Matthew when Jesus is teaching the parable of the sheep and the goats: 35 For I was hungred, and ye gave me meat; I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink; I was a stranger, and ye took me in: 36 Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison and ye came unto me. 37Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? Or thirsty, and gave thee drink? 38 When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee? 39Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee? 40And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.
The nurses come into an environment that is so dangerous that we don't allow anyone that is not essential to enter. They draw their own labs, clean their own patients' rooms, and mop the hallways. They watch over and protect the patients that most would run from. Their grace under pressure, compassion, and professionalism make me proud to be a nurse.
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Thank you for your kind, professional and loving care. You all put in so many hours and are probably underpaid. You risk your lives so that others may keep theirs. You risk your lives so that others may keep theirs. You selflessly give your time and skills to those who need you. No matter what is wrong with us. You're there at our bedside with a warm smile and open arms. You are brave, fearless, tender, patient, kind, supportive, and empathetic. I am a prisoner; someone convicted of a crime and is serving time for it. You walk in my room, see my shackles, see my chains, yet you treat me no different. You make me not only feel better but feel like a human being. From the bottom of my heart, Thank you so much for everything you do. Y'all are my heroes!
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I would like to thank 3rd floor staff for the amazing care I received during my stay. You guys were always so attentive, kind, and understanding and even though we speak different languages, you all always went above and beyond to communicate with me. I will always appreciate and remember everything you guys did for me. Thank you.
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They were the most caring nurses I ever had to look after me. They really rock as far as I am concerned. Keep up the good work.
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I'd like to give thanks (a special thanks) to the entire 3rd floor staff for their patience, care, and compassion that they extended to me during my stay here. Not one time was anything denied me or overlooked and that level of care actually contributed to my well-being. I can't name everyone but Niki, Ashley, Georgette, and Rachel are just a few of the outstanding employees you have and I stand ready to compliment them to the fullest. Please let them know that their service is not in vain, but greatly appreciated.
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I would like to thank every nurse who had a hand in taking care of my husband. Heather Poore, Beverly Dolweck, Lindy Sanderson, Nora Morris, Niki Landrum, and Grace Sullivan. I would also like to thank the woman who got us ready and answered every question I had at my husband's discharge. Thank you each and every one of you. I will never forget you all!
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I have worked on this floor for over a year now, and I feel like there is no other floor that has more teamwork or comradery. Everyone is always willing to help when there is another nurse or CNA having a hard day or is behind on their work. The nurses and CNAs are also able to maintain positive attitudes even when someone is floated, which makes for a more difficult patient load. The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted our strength as a team even more. There have been days that every patient was total care and demented, which usually makes for a difficult day or even week, but this team on 3rd floor banded together to ensure that all patients were safe and cared for. The nurses and CNAs in this department work to ensure that our COVID-19 patients are not scared or lonely during their stay, and many of the patients have expressed overwhelming gratitude upon discharge. The director of the 3rd floor has set a great example for her nurses and CNAs, whether it be continuing education, positive attitudes, or being available when there is an urgent situation. I am proud to be a part of the 3rd floor staff because even when we are having a bad day, the staff are able to laugh and joke with each other, which I really appreciate. I truly believe that Alisha has developed a team that will only continue to improve, grow together, and thrive.
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Third floor is quite an interesting floor I must say. We are a fairly new medical/surgical floor with approximately 50% of the staff still within their first year at this facility, a majority of them still within their first year of nursing. Any floor at this point would still be settling in and working on becoming like a well-oiled machine. However, through such a critical time, our floor has had to undergo changes that not only affected our job as individuals but as a team as well.
Early on in this year, third floor was named a COVID-only floor. Suddenly we were working with a patient population that everyone feared, and our jobs and roles had changed until further notice. Plastic walls separated patient rooms from the nurse's station, full PPE was required for every patient interaction, and patients were deteriorating faster. Non-essential personnel was no longer allowed on our floor, we had to begin drawing labs on all patients, cleaning every room, and mopping the floors every shift, all along with our daily nursing duties. It's not hard to say that anyone in this situation would think twice about having to come to work. Yet, it was amazing to see the way the third floor staff adapted and faced the challenge. We came to work the next day like putting on full PPE was second nature, worked as a team to see what we could do to make our floor more efficient for our new situation, and quickly became professionals at team nursing.
Even when our patient demographic changed and we seemed to only have COVID patients that were elderly and confused, we adapted. We made calls and learned their favorite flavors of juice, or their favorite foods, and arranged FaceTime calls for them to see their family. It has been astonishing seeing our staff sit in a patient's room in full PPE for hours holding a dying patient's hand, or helping a patient's family put on PPE to go see their loved one for the last time. Their compassion is nothing short of what nursing stands for.
We come into work tired, fearful, and anxious and still treat it like another day on the job. Yet it is not. Our jobs are not the same as they previously were. However, I have the pleasure of working with a team that makes each other somehow feel like it is. Third floors staff truly lives up to the definition of the word "team", and I hope through this nomination you can also see how special they are.
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I have worked on the 3rd floor for over a year now, and I can truly say that I have never felt so comfortable and happy coming in to work every day. I feel like Karen and Alisha have created a team that works so well together. This is a group of nurses and CNAs who can laugh and joke with each other, who comfort each other during difficult times, and who work to provide the best patient care possible. I have never worked with a group of nurses more willing to jump at the opportunity to help each other when asked...and sometimes even when they aren't. The patients that I have had the opportunity to talk to rave on the staff of the 3rd floor and it is so easy to agree with them. Everyone has worked tirelessly during the pandemic to care for the patients without so much as a complaint. I am so honored to be a part of this group of DAISY Nurses.