Hannah cares for her patients as if they were her own family. Residents and their families love to see Hannah write her name on their whiteboard during bedside shift report because they have such a good relationship with her.

By the end of her first shift with a resident, she will know their whole life story all the way down the family tree, and even be on a first-name basis with all involved. She has a knack for building a rapport with them. It comes naturally to her.

Surprisingly, Hannah is a young nurse but has an old soul when it comes to nursing. She focuses on the foundations of nursing and uses the nursing process to a T. She has a genuine and empathetic heart in all aspects of nursing and her life. I have witnessed this while working beside her.

One of our residents had reached the end of life. He had been on our unit for a while. He and his family worked hard with therapy and the medical/nursing team to help him reach his goals, but unfortunately, he declined due to progressing cancer. He was transitioned to comfort care.

We cared for him and his family on our unit until he passed away peacefully, comfortably, and with his loved ones by his side.

Hannah was not working during this, but she made it a point to come in on her day off and help with his post-mortem care. She lives an hour away from OHRH. She shed tears with and comforted the family.

She has also thrown birthday parties for several residents on our unit, bringing in hats, cupcakes, and candles for them to blow out on their special day. Just this week she was able to coordinate a going away party for a resident that resided on our unit for almost three months.

She not only cares for her patients in this manner, but she also is close to all of her coworkers. She is always willing to help out even though she carries a seven-patient load ninety percent of the time. The entire team follows her lead.

It is essential to have nurses such as Hannah not only on the OHRH team but for the future of nursing as well.