8 months ago, my daughter was born, and it was incredibly stressful. My daughter came a month early, and as soon as she was born, she was taken to the NICU for a transitional period, and I was taken to the Mother-Baby unit. I was separated from my daughter for about the first 6 hours of her life, which left me beyond anxious and scared and upset, but I know she needed monitoring. My daughter was brought to me near shift change as Jasma was coming on. My husband and I were exhausted and still very anxious and concerned about how our daughter was doing. My daughter required Q4 heel sticks, which, as new parents, was very difficult to see your baby need to have her heel pricked every 4 hours when she’s just so tiny and new. Jasma was an incredible nurse for us that night, and the following nights we were in the inpatient unit. Jasma came in with a very calm energy; I'm sure she could easily see that we were frazzled and overwhelmed. She took the time to talk to us, let us know what she was there to do, and explained what she would be doing overnight. She took the time to answer our questions and provide additional information we didn't even know we needed.

After she introduced herself and spoke with us, we were much calmer and put at ease by knowing we had a knowledgeable and kind nurse. It was only after she addressed our very obvious worries that she finally interacted with our daughter. I'm not sure if she does that intentionally or if it is just from her empathy that she took the time to speak to us and address us before she just jumped straight into caring for our daughter, who was only hours old at that point, and that made a world of difference. This is our first baby, and her birth and the immediate time after her birth were nerve-racking and scary, and Jasma came in; she read the room very quickly, and before she even picked up our daughter, she took care of us first. When Jasma did interact with our daughter, she was so gentle, moved slowly, and kept our daughter in our sight the entire time. Jasma stayed near us and taught us things about how to care for our new baby in a very relaxed conversation that changed the entire mood of our night. We felt cared for, heard, and validated, and that our daughter was safe and cared for overnight. My husband and I still speak about Jasma when we remember the first few hours and days that our daughter was born. Jasma needs to know that how she cared for us as a family and for our little peanut made a huge impact on our lives and will always be a part of our stories when we recall our daughter's birth and time in the hospital. Please recognize her for her outstanding care, incredible kindness, and calming energy during the beginning of our lives as a family of three. Once again, thank you with all our hearts, Jasma.