Kathy has a special knack for connecting with families of our patients. In critical care, it often happens that we perform procedures and tasks for our patients but we take "care" of their families. One specific example of this is a patient who was in a motorcycle accident who we had sedated and paralyzed for quite some time. Kathy was the primary nurse for this patient for the majority of two weeks. Kathy, with her talent for talking and connecting with her families, found out that it was the patient's mother's birthday. Mom, who was from out of state, had limited support people around her. Kathy arranged for a cake to be brought in to the department and wrangled several other staff members to come in and sing happy birthday to mom. Needless to say, the patient's mother was overcome with gratitude. This is just one example of Kathy's ability to connect with people and the compassion she shows everyone.