I nominate Emily Taquechel for the DAISY Award for her care of my mother at the end of her life. When my sister called me and told me that mom had “given up” and that she did not seem to be up to the treatment to recover from yet another COPD exacerbation. I left work, driving hours to get to the hospital, and before I got ther,e my sister told me that Mom had chosen “comfort care” instead of life-sustaining treatment. 

When I joined my step-dad and sister in my mother’s room, I met Emily Taquechel, a personable and genuine nurse. She made us all feel at ease and taken care of as a family.  Emily made herself available to us all night and never made us feel like we were asking too much of her.

Our brother drove in that night, and our third sister flew in from Colorado to spend Mom’s last moments with her. Emily worked around all 5 of us and made sure we did not feel “in the way” as we clung to our mother in her final days. She discussed medication options with us and communicated with the provider when medication needed adjusting. 

Emily had a way of saying things that I, as a nurse, would not have thought to say, and it made all the difference.  We spent hours and days hand-holding, forehead-kissing, foot caressing, mouth swabbing, and silently sobbing with Mom, and Emily shared what she saw from looking in from the outside of our traumatic stay. She said, “We talk about good deaths and bad deaths… and being surrounded by your loved ones, telling stories… that’s a really good death.” There was no sense of pity or false sympathy; she was genuine and reassuring.  It was hard to accept that Mom had chosen to allow her body to die, but in that moment, Emily’s words gave us all a sense of solace-that at least this way we all get to be there with her and support her. 

Another time, Emily mentioned that she must have been a really great mom because of the outpouring of love in the room. She offered us coffee in the wee hours of the morning as we were sleep-deprived and resting in short shifts at a hotel around the block.

When it became difficult to know exactly how Mom was feeling, we became anxious that we might not be doing enough. I came to Emily to ask her to assess Mom for signs that she was uncomfortable or to identify any other measures we could take to ensure she was as comfortable as possible. I listed off all of the comfort measures we were doing, and she said, “You all are doing the most.” This reassured me that we really were doing everything possible to care for Mom in her last hours.

We were lucky to have Emily two night shifts in a row until the morning when Mom finally let go. Emily came into the room and gently checked on Mom, and let us know that her heart rate was thready, and she would come back and check on her again soon.  Mom passed shortly after, and so came to a close our visit at 3MICU.

I cannot thank Emily enough for giving us so much uninterrupted alone time with Mom, making herself available whenever we asked for her, and never faking sadness, as is common for healthcare workers in these situations. This helped us focus on being there with Mom. Emily provided exceptional end-of-life care for our mother, and she also cared for us, the way we needed to be cared for as a family.

Emily even listened to our step-dad detail Mom’s burial wishes more than once and looked at photos of the beautiful hill she is to be buried on as if she had not already seen them. I think she could tell that it was important to him to share her wishes as he was processing her passing. 

Thank you, Emily, for taking such good care of all of us.