Nabeel Baig
December 2024
Nabeel
Baig
,
RN
7E Pediatric Oncology
University of Michigan Health at Michigan Medicine
Ann Arbor
,
MI
United States
Nabeel won her over, and he did so with a gentle bedside manner and at a level of care that blew me away. He played hide and seek in her room, drew cards with stickers and characters, and wrote thoughtful messages on them.
It has taken me some time to get around to nominating Nabeel for this award. No because of his lack of worthiness, but rather because of the exemplary work I feel all nurses perform, and my feeling that Nabeel would be perhaps a bit shy to know someone nominated him. That aside, to me, Nabeel’s lasting impact on my daughter speaks volumes!
For context, I will provide some background. My daughter is a pediatric oncology patient and was diagnosed last summer at 3 ½ years old. She had the majority of her mass removed but experienced post-operative complications, including sepsis, and still undergoes monitoring for the remaining mass. During the beginning weeks, when her labs were inconsistent and she was in a lot of pain, a surgical plan was established. Nabeel made the utmost difference in my daughter’s life! My daughter, who was a night owl, with a night shift mom, would need to be pushed around the halls in the ride-in car at Mott to distract her from the pain. She would light up in glee every night Nabeel was assigned her nurse. She would stop in the halls and chat with him; talking about her day, his dad, his favorite color…this coming from a little girl whose dad is not around and she really doesn’t know men.
My daughter, upon first meeting Nabeel, said to me, “But mommy, he’s a boy!” Nabeel won her over, and he did so with a gentle bedside manner and at a level of care that blew me away. He played hide and seek in her room, drew cards with stickers and characters, and wrote thoughtful messages on them. He cheered for her when she took her medications and explained “scary” things to her like how her shots worked. He stopped to pay red-light, green-light in the hall with her and on top of that, he was a phenomenal nurse all along. He was on time with medications and was readily available to assist when she had vomiting spells or catheter malfunctions. He was mindful and observant of all the things she needed. My daughter also began calling Nabeel her “best friend.”
Today, we are not over 6 months out from her long stay at Mott, and my daughter still asks about Nabeel. She asks if he would be proud of her for taking her medications and still says she misses her best friend and that someday she wants to be a nurse like Nabeel. He made the most extraordinary difference to my little girl, and he did so simply by being himself. He also showed compassion and care for not only my daughter but for me and my family as we learned to navigate her illness. Nabeel exemplifies the sort of person it takes to be an unbelievable nurse and an unbelievable person.
For context, I will provide some background. My daughter is a pediatric oncology patient and was diagnosed last summer at 3 ½ years old. She had the majority of her mass removed but experienced post-operative complications, including sepsis, and still undergoes monitoring for the remaining mass. During the beginning weeks, when her labs were inconsistent and she was in a lot of pain, a surgical plan was established. Nabeel made the utmost difference in my daughter’s life! My daughter, who was a night owl, with a night shift mom, would need to be pushed around the halls in the ride-in car at Mott to distract her from the pain. She would light up in glee every night Nabeel was assigned her nurse. She would stop in the halls and chat with him; talking about her day, his dad, his favorite color…this coming from a little girl whose dad is not around and she really doesn’t know men.
My daughter, upon first meeting Nabeel, said to me, “But mommy, he’s a boy!” Nabeel won her over, and he did so with a gentle bedside manner and at a level of care that blew me away. He played hide and seek in her room, drew cards with stickers and characters, and wrote thoughtful messages on them. He cheered for her when she took her medications and explained “scary” things to her like how her shots worked. He stopped to pay red-light, green-light in the hall with her and on top of that, he was a phenomenal nurse all along. He was on time with medications and was readily available to assist when she had vomiting spells or catheter malfunctions. He was mindful and observant of all the things she needed. My daughter also began calling Nabeel her “best friend.”
Today, we are not over 6 months out from her long stay at Mott, and my daughter still asks about Nabeel. She asks if he would be proud of her for taking her medications and still says she misses her best friend and that someday she wants to be a nurse like Nabeel. He made the most extraordinary difference to my little girl, and he did so simply by being himself. He also showed compassion and care for not only my daughter but for me and my family as we learned to navigate her illness. Nabeel exemplifies the sort of person it takes to be an unbelievable nurse and an unbelievable person.