I may be a bit biased, but I wholeheartedly believe that 9 Ortho is more than deserving of the DAISY Team Award. As I reflect on my time here before moving on to my next role at Parkland, I am overwhelmed with gratitude for the lessons I’ve learned—about teamwork, compassion, and the incredible impact that can be made when people come together.

Over the years, 9 Ortho has consistently gone above and beyond for patients, but two moments in particular stand out—two weddings, organized with love and dedication, for patients who might not have otherwise had the chance to experience their special day.

The first was for a young woman battling cancer. She had been with her significant other for years, and as her hospital stay lengthened and her health declined, her prognosis became clear. Yet, despite everything, love prevailed—her partner proposed to her in the hospital. It was a bittersweet moment, filled with both excitement and heartbreak, as the reality of her condition made the idea of a traditional wedding seem impossible.

That’s when the 9 Ortho team stepped in. What started as a simple idea among a few nurses quickly became a floor-wide effort to create a beautiful wedding ceremony for her. 9 ortho worked closely with the chaplain to set up a day and time for the patient to experience her special day in the chapel. On the morning of the ceremony, staff helped the bride-to-be get ready helping her into her gown, doing her makeup, and fixing her hair. Before heading down, they gathered for a photo in her room, a radiant moment of joy as she smiled, surrounded by the staff who had become like family. With the help of some of the nurses, they wheeled her down in her wheelchair with her oxygen tank to the chapel, where she and her fiancé exchanged vows in an intimate, heartfelt ceremony. She returned to her room afterward to celebrate with her family, her face glowing with happiness.

The second wedding was for a male patient who had been engaged for many years but never had the financial means to have a wedding. Facing a terminal illness, one of his final wishes was to marry the love of his life. Once again, the 9 Ortho team united to make this dream a reality. Since he was too weak to leave his bed, the chaplain came to his room to perform the ceremony. Staff members decorated the space and gathered to witness the heartfelt moment. A photo was taken of the groom, lying in bed with a bright red boutonniere and the biggest smile on his face, surrounded by the 9 Ortho team. Both he and his bride were deeply moved, expressing endless gratitude for the kindness and care shown to them.

Moments like these are what make 9 Ortho so special. It’s more than a team—it’s a family, one that not only supports each other but goes to extraordinary lengths for their patients. 

The compassion, dedication, and teamwork displayed here have shaped me in ways I will carry throughout my career. As I move forward, I hope to instill the same spirit of teamwork and selflessness in others, ensuring that the culture of care fostered on 9 Ortho continues to spread throughout the hospital and beyond.

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My daughter was a patient on the 9th floor for several weeks. She’s only 13 and was the youngest patient on the floor. I can’t say enough positive things about the 9th floor nurses, techs, and nurse managers. I will definitely include all of this in any surveys we receive. My daughter was a patient in the Trauma ER, ICU, PCU, and IPR. My whole family will tell you that 9 Ortho was the best! 

My daughter was in a lot of pain due to nerve damage after a severe pelvic fracture. The nurses were so accommodating and professional. They brought pain meds on time, made sure she was as comfortable as possible, and made her feel at ease. They even washed and conditioned her long hair - they were creative with positioning the bed and basins so that they could wash it with actual shampoo and water. When they first washed it, dirt & grass from the ATV accident washed out - 3 weeks after the accident. 

Rebecca & Deepa were our favorite night nurses. They were always quick and quiet when giving meds during the night so Audrey could go back to sleep quickly. They both treated my daughter like they were caring for their own family. They tried to do everything possible to get her out of pain.

I can’t even name all of the favorite daytime nurses. Courtney, Mikeala, Summer, Zaira, Kiera, Mireya, Laura. I feel terrible for not remembering all the names, but I lived in the hospital for 60 days straight, and I am still sleep-deprived. Everyone provided incredible care, all the pain meds, pin site care, paging doctors for us, bringing cold packs, heat packs, etc. I know we pressed the Pain button an awful lot.

YESINIA: If Yesi is not in charge of the PCAs, she sure should be! Yesi made sure that Audrey was always clean and comfortable. She made a big impact on Audrey, just by treating her so kindly and being a friend to her. Yesi visited her when we moved to IPR and brought her a stuffed animal, which was so incredibly kind. Great care from Rose, Thomas, Biji, Joicy, and more that I am forgetting. They always made sure we had what we needed, always quick to clean Audrey up with endless chuck changes.

9 Ortho, Thank you for taking care of us all. My daughter's ATV accident was the worst experience of our lives, and your team made it all more bearable. The nerve pain in her right foot is still there, but much less than before. We are HOME in Oklahoma, where she will be doing physical therapy and continuing to heal. I just wanted you all to know what a positive impact you all made on that 13-year-old girl. 

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I would like to recognize this hard-working team for what they all do each day and the compassion they have for these challenging population patients. We recently did a PI project focusing on increasing patient satisfaction with a focus area attention to needs/response to concerns/complaint and likelihood to recommend. We collaborated as a team to help achieve our goal with both day shift and night shift engagement. Our goal outcome exceeded our expectations. We tackled as a team to achieve our goals by having unit leaders round on discharged patients and addressing concerns prior to their discharge. The charge nurses do follow up discharge phone calls and answer questions patients may have. The day charge nurses would round half of the unit, and the night shift would round the remainder of the unit and address any concerns necessary. We work as a team in responding to patient call lights within 2 minutes. The HUC will escalate at the front desk if the call light has not been addressed. In addition, our unit has a caring basket, in which nursing staff would donate items for patients’ use, such as hair ties, brushes, leave-in conditioner, and T-shirts. When patients stay here for a long time and are unable to get up to shower due to their medical issues, patients are appreciative when our nursing staff work together to give a “bath party” in which we get creative on washing the patients’ hair in bed and provide conditioner for the patients with long, tangled hair. We support each other by responding to alarms and addressing it promptly. The nursing staff continues to stay positive during challenging time and provide ICARE values with each patient and toward one another, our outcome response to concerns/complaints reached 98.21 and likelihood of recommending 96.43. Our nursing staff strives to treat our patients with high-quality care by supporting each other and being present and visible for assistance when needed. Our unit likes to work together as a team to achieve great outcomes for the patients. You can always find a group of nursing staff assisting with admissions on our unit, or the team will support during RAT calls. This team goes above and beyond daily to provide the highest quality care for the patient.