The Unknown Impact of Nurses on Patients' Lives

Ever wonder if you should have become a nurse? Read how one young patient’s family thanked his unforeseen friends.

Nursing takes a special kind of person. You have to be intelligent and personable, detail-oriented and patient, tough and empathetic. Most nurses find themselves surrounded by sick and suffering people experiencing some of the worst days of their lives.

Nursing can be a tough and thankless job. But it doesn’t always go unrecognized. For example, an article from The Boston Globe is a moving ‘thank-you’ from a mother to the oncology nurses who cared for her 12-year-old son, Mike. These dedicated RNs saw him through his fight with cancer and even to his final days. They entertained him, distracted him, cajoled him, and commiserated with him.

In the article, Mike’s mother details how each nurse her son encountered during treatment made his struggle a little easier. How each went above and beyond to bond with him and bring him a smile, becoming his “unforeseen friends.”

In honor of one of Mike’s last wishes, his family set up a Nurses’ Fund so they could pay back some of the joy their son’s Pediatric Oncology nurses had provided to him.

Though the work of nurses sometimes does go unnoticed, awards and honors do exist to honor those who go above and beyond. One such award is the Daisy Award, meant to recognize nurses who exemplify deep compassion for their patients and go beyond the call of regular nursing duties. Over 2,800 facilities in all 50 U.S. states and 17 other countries nominate nurses for the award.

Multiple members of our amazing nursing team have been honored with the Daisy Award. Karna G. , a med/surg tele RN, received the award while on traveling RN job in California after being nominated by patients, the families of patients, and her fellow staff members. Likewise, Vickie S., a med/surg nurse on a travel nurse job in Florida, and Lindsay B., a med/surg RN working a Texas nurse job, were Daisy Award recipients. Lindsay B. was even described as her manager as “a superhero in scrubs”!

We are proud to honor all of the nurses who give of themselves to ease the pain of others - and we are proud to have many of these individuals on our team. The sacrifices you make and the heartbreaks you experience make a difference to patients and their families, and we are so grateful for you!