In all honesty, this is a long time coming. I could name a thousand ways that Vanessa goes above and beyond for each and every one of her patients, often without even so much as a thank you.

She is the embodiment of integrity. I have watched her care for patients with empathy, compassion, understanding, and grace. Even when patients mistreat her, she addresses every need with professionalism and kindness. She takes nothing personally and leaves all judgment at the door. I don’t know many people who can compartmentalize like that, who can look past how they’re being treated to care for the person mistreating them. It’s astounding, and it’s something I actively try to learn from her.

I had the privilege of precepting Vanessa when she was a new grad, and, corny as it may sound, she now teaches me. I could go on about her strength of character, her intelligence as an RN, and her moral compass that guides her to make ethical decisions daily.

I want to highlight a situation that happened. There was a patient who had been in the hospital for a long time, someone who had become a victim of a system that seemed rigged against him. It was an unfortunate situation: this poor patient was going to be discharged to emergency housing because no facility would accept him. He couldn’t get the equipment he needed due to an insurance technicality.

Vanessa escalated the situation as far as she could. When she hit every roadblock along the way, she got creative. After exhausting every avenue, she reached out to PT/OT, who were able to donate a wheelchair to the patient. This changed everything for him. He had been despondent and depressed, ready to give up. The solution Vanessa made happen gave him hope, hope in a moment that was literally life or death for him.

This patient, like I said, had been let down by the system. He had an unfortunate history that, in my opinion, caused implicit bias and clouded the judgment of many involved in his care. Vanessa pushed past all of that and facilitated what seemed impossible. She did it without hesitation because helping others is simply who she is.

This was an all-day task that took hours of phone calls, chats, and in-person conversations. It took her entire shift, a shift in which she also had four other patients to care for. I want to emphasize how huge this was, something no other nurse would have undertaken.

Over the years, there have been countless examples of Vanessa going above and beyond. She makes an impact on everyone she meets. Even when a patient is cursing at her or calling her names, she still treats them as if they were her own family member. Her ability to focus on the patient as a whole is remarkable, and I am genuinely in awe of her.

 As I sit here typing this, she’s wrapping up her day, saying goodbye, and heading home. She’ll be back tomorrow, ready to do it all over again like nothing ever happened.

Vanessa will probably never truly understand the impact she has on her patients’ lives. She is the embodiment of the DAISY Award. She would never seek recognition for what she does, which is exactly why it’s so important that I write this nomination. As we all know, the true meaning of character is what we do when nobody is watching.