I was recently a patient at UF Health Leesburg Hospital for a total of six days. On two of those days, I was privileged to have Summer as my nurse. I say “privileged” because, while the care I received from the other nurses who attended to me was good. The care I received from Summer was nothing less than exceptional. From the moment she walked into my room for the first time, I knew that I would be receiving the very best and most personal care. She greeted me warmly, looking me in the eyes, and introduced herself. She asked me questions to find out not only how I was doing clinically, but also how I was handling the situation. I could tell that she really cared about me as a person and wanted to be there for me in the ways I needed. This was just the beginning.

In those two days, Summer went above and beyond her job as a nurse in the care she gave for my physical needs. When the IV I had in my arm was showing signs of going bad and needed to be changed, she took the initiative to put a new port IV in my wrist before the old one was taken out. It was getting close to shift change, and she wanted to save the nurse coming on from having to do this, knowing that it would be hard to do and that she had the expertise needed to do it. She used her skills to put it in such a way that it would be secure. And she sat with me and talked to me, knowing the discomfort I was in having this done.

Over the two days, she made sure I had what I needed to keep my infected hand and arm as comfortable as possible. She explained thoroughly and in layman’s terms the various medicines I was being given and the reasons for them. She was quick to answer any questions I had, and even anticipated my questions before I could ask them. She could see that I was feeling discouraged when I wasn’t making progress as quickly as I had hoped, and she reassured me with both her words and her sweet, calming presence. At the beginning of the day and before she left for the day, she told me how glad she was to be my nurse – and I knew she really meant it.

Being a patient in the hospital is always a scary experience. Now that I’m in my late 70s, it’s even harder to be in such a helpless and vulnerable place. I have to say that on the days I had Summer as my nurse, I was able to deal with the challenge of being a patient much better because of her personal touch, compassionate care, and skillful attention to my medical needs. It gives me tremendous pleasure to nominate Summer for the DAISY Award.