April 2016
Brenda
Kelly
,
RN
RNICU
Sparrow Hospital
Lansing
,
MI
United States
As someone on the periphery of a recent patient/family care situation in the RNICU, I was deeply touched by the compassion and care shown in that circumstance by Brenda Kelly, RN. Brenda volunteered to be the primary nurse for a baby born with multiple life-threatening conditions. This baby required the highest level of care our unit provides, demanding focus, commitment, skill and dedication from the entire team but especially from her nurse. Knowing the challenges, Brenda willingly accepted this very difficult assignment based in large part on her compassion for the baby's family, especially the mother, who had only been in the U.S. for less than 2 months and spoke little to no English. Brenda used her Spanish speaking abilities to comfort the mother- who I'm sure heard not just words she could understand, but also a compassion she could feel when Brenda spoke with her. As a further evidence of Brenda's skillful ability to connect, following the infant's death, she was able to write eloquently of the family's gratitude and spread that love to cover many of the other caregivers involved in the case. Brenda's excellent nursing care of this family, her humility, compassion, and ability to connect are all reasons that she is deserving of the DAISY Award.