My 83-year-old grandmother was a patient in the ICU for 2 weeks. She had a weak heart and was struggling to breathe and eat any food or liquids. Every day, we wondered what was going to happen to her - some days she seemed like she was getting better, and others showed a decline in health, which led to her being sent back to the ICU. It was a rollercoaster of emotions for our entire family.

My grandmother is the oldest of 17 siblings, a mother of 4, and a grandmother of 10. Every day we sat in the hospital all day keeping her company until she sadly passed away. Tony Lyas was her last nurse in the ICU before she was moved to Comfort Care. He was amazing. Out of all the nurses my grandmother had, Tony was the most caring, attentive, and professional of them all. Whenever she needed something, he came to her care immediately.

My grandmother could barely drink anything, but when she asked for juice, Tony brought her every kind the hospital offered and tested them with her. It’s little things like that that make a difference and show patients and their families that workers care. That day, we also had many family members visit her, and he was very understanding, empathetic, and accommodating - he made it as comfortable as possible for not only my grandmother, but our family, too. I felt as though he was also a family member. I wish Tony the best in his career; he has a very bright future ahead of him. He is a great nurse – he’s great at all the technical things and also has a very pure heart; that’s something that schools cannot teach.