Role model. Patient advocate. Compassionate caregiver; these are only but a few ways to describe Candice Coker, a Registered Nurse at UT Southwestern Medical Center's Medical Intensive Care Unit. She consistently goes beyond the capacities of her job description to do anything and everything that is in the best interests of her patients, their families, and for the work staff overall. She sets the standard for what makes a phenomenal nurse.
We had a female patient who had a deteriorating health status to whom we decided to provide end-of-life treatment. What made this particular scenario particularly saddening is that the patient was in her 20's and had a seven-year-old daughter. Candice walked the family through their emotional grief with such compassion and always knowing the right words to say to console them. The family's main concern was how the patient's daughter was going to acquire closure from the tragic situation. Candice took accountability and arranged a Child Life Specialist to come from Children's Hospital. They came and talked with the child, offered her the opportunity to listen to her mom's heartbeat one last time, and made a clay molding of both of their hands to keep as a memento. The child was told how sick her mother was, and that it was okay for her mother to go to heaven now. This is what makes Candice a great nurse.
She doesn't think about only her patients; she cares for their families too. Although she knows death all too well in the ICU, she guides families through their grieving process with such finesse and compassion. She values all her patients and regards them as extended family members. She treats everyone with respect, showing how much she wholeheartedly loves her role as a nurse.
As phenomenal as she is as a bedside nurse, it is without a doubt I know she will be great in her newly promoted role as our Charge Nurse and Assistant Nurse Manager on our unit. What guided Candice to these roles is her innovative passion for education. She believes in investing in her fellow nurses and helping them to capitalize on their abilities to be the best they can possibly be. She approached our manager and inquired on how she can personally improve the unit. Being that there was an open ANM position, she requested that it have an emphasis on education where she can work on supporting the educational needs of our nurses on the unit. The reasoning why this was so important to her was because our hospital/unit budget does not allow for our own educator. As wide as our medical population is, we deal with a variety of critically-ill patients that deserve the best care they can possibly receive. This can only be achieved through trained nurses.
Candice's habitual behavior in striving for excellence is seen via her involvement with the Unit-Based Council and Nurse Practice Council as well. She helps to organize what we call 'MICU Reviews' often serving as a refresher on topics we deal with in the MICU. This ultimately leads to a better patient care experience where not only patients are satisfied with their care, but with nurses being satisfied with their jobs as well.
Candice exemplifies the five characteristics of ICARE; Innovation, Compassion, Accountability, Respect, and Excellence.