... It was a busy night shift, and there was a patient with Steven-Johnsons Syndrome on the unit. His face was covered in slough and a thick ointment that was being slathered on every two hours. In the middle of her own busy shift, Sherry stepped into his room and kindly offered, "May I please help you get cleaned up?" She spent the next half an hour gently wiping off the slough, all the while asking the patient about his life outside of the hospital. It was the simplest thing, but the patient's relief after her help was palpable. She helped a patient with a horribly disfiguring disease regain his dignity--not by just taking notice, but also taking action.

Another instance was early on Christmas Eve. She had a very sick patient--the patient had just had a baby, and during delivery had developed a cerebral hemorrhage. At 0600 that morning the patient's condition acutely deteriorated, and it became apparent she would likely die. Sherry very calmly notified our charge nurse, the treatment team, and the patient's husband. She welcomed the patient's husband at the bedside in the very critical moments of this patient's life.

Sherry leads by example. I can't tell you how many times newer nurses (myself included!) were busy and behind on patient care during our beginning months in SICU, and how she always cheerfully lent a hand to ensure the best possible care for the patient. She does this with an attitude of respect to her co-workers always willing to teach without being condescending or rude.

October 2014 was a very tough month to work as a nurse in Dallas. It was another late night, and Sherry and I were working on the same side. She offered to help me turn my patient, and she just looked at me and said "Is everything ok? You don't seem like yourself." I told her the truth: my fear for my patients' safety, my fear about the uncertainty of communicable disease, and how I couldn't figure out to overcome my fear. She didn't miss a beat; she just seriously said, "You feel this way because your heart is hurting. You feel this way because you care about your patients and about what happens to them. And as nurses, it's something we all experience. And we shouldn't let go of how much we care about our patients. Not for anything or anyone."

Sherry she is an exceptional nurse, and is a fantastic example of what we should all aspire to be in our nursing practice.