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Sometimes a few words have a big impact. For the nurses on Tower 4C—one of BWH’s Bone Marrow Transplant Units—those words were in the form of a letter written by a former patient’s sister to The Boston Globe, nominating them to be featured in the newspaper’s annual “Salute to Nurses.” The letter was published with a group photo in the May 8 issue.
“It was really touching to read,” said Marsha Milone, RN, nursing director of 4BC/12C. “The patient, Patricia Clark, spent a couple of months with us, and she and her family formed quite a bond with us. The nurses felt honored to be remembered by the family in this way.”
Clark’s sister, Joan Obecny, wrote the letter to the newspaper to thank the staff on 4C for the skillful care, compassion and dedication they provided for Clark during her hospital stay. Clark died after spending two months in the hospital, the majority of which was spent on 4C.
“The skill, compassion, and dedication of the nursing staff allowed (Pat’s) last weeks to be hopeful and dignified,” Obecny wrote in her nomination letter. “Even though four or five nurses were my sister’s primary caretakers, all the nurses on the unit worked as a team—always there, always helping each other, complementing each other. Their skill and competency level was remarkable—working jointly with the doctors... (They) always included the family in decision making, and cared for her with gentleness, patience and compassion. They joked and laughed with us, and even participated in a snowball fight in the room because she wanted to ‘feel’ snow one more time.”
Milone says that while patients and family members frequently send thank you notes to the nurses after leaving the unit, a recognition like Obecny’s is far less common.
“It’s rare to get a thank you that is so formal, and Joan did a great job capturing what nursing is all about,” Milone said. “The practice of nursing is so much more than administering medication; it encompasses care and compassion and bringing a sense of normalcy to patients when they’ve lost everything they’ve known.”