Carissa cared for my mom when she was admitted. She had just received a clot-busting medication in the emergency room and she seamlessly took over her care from there with remarkable attention, clinical excellence, and compassion while managing two other icu patients at that time, she never missed a beat. She noticed early signs of a brain bleed before the scheduled repeat scans, and rushed my mom to do a ct scan even when it's not due yet- that's when the team found out about the stroke that turned into a brain bleed. From there, the treatment plan was different and more accurate for her condition.

Her sharp clinical instincts and vigilance likely prevented my mom's condition from becoming way worse. She became the checkpoint for every treatment my mom received, catching details others might have missed, and ensuring that nothing slipped through the cracks. Amidst the overwhelming flood of information coming from various doctors, brain doctors, surgery people, nurse practioners, charge nurses, I found myself completely lost and emotionally exhausted. In a chaotic and busy moment, as she pulled me out of the room, she paused and looked at me, just long enough to see the distress I hadn't even voiced yet. She gently checked in with me, offered a prayer right then and there, and gave me something I hadn't realized I needed at the time: the feeling that someone truly saw me. It barely took a minute for all this. Her compassion extended far beyond her patient- it reached our family and wrapped us in comfort during such a painful time.

***

Carissa was my husband’s nurse for first 2 days. Her work, responsiveness, professionalism, empathy, and compassion was beyond expectation. Even though my husband was very sick I felt very confident because it felt like she didn’t move from his bedside and had an eye on him every single minute. She worked tirelessly ,still keeping smile on her face and was there for any of our needed even before we realized our needs. She pushed to have him get MRI within few hours coming back to work next day night when she knew that it was not done during the day. I have been an ICU RN for 20 yrs so I can easily recognize the nurse who love their job and accountable.

I appreciate all the care we received, especially all the staff but she stands out . Thank you!

***

Over 4 consecutive nights, she continued to care for my mother with unwavering dignity and patience, even as my mom's condition declined and became more difficult to manage. Because of Carissa, I was able to go home and rest, knowing that my mom is in the best hands possible. She exemplifies Methodist's I care values in every way- integrity in how she advocates and acts in the best interest of my mom and her other patients, compassion in her ability to connect deeply not just with the patients, but their families, accountability by catching a critical complication early and taking action, respect in how she honors patient dignity even in difficult circumstances, and excellence in delivering consistent, high quality carewhile managing multiple patients.

When I told her that I wanted to write her a DAISY note, she humbly said "caring for your mom like how I would treat my own family is a huge privilege to me, and I would do it over and over- one patient at a time, safely." That is the most unsung and humbling phrase I have ever heard. Nurses like her rarely ask for a recognition, but they deserve it more that words express. This nomination is just one small thank you for the tremendous impact she made during the most heartbreaking days of our lives.