My husband had back surgery and went home and fell several days later. The second surgery was to repair L5 which was fractured. That was the beginning of a long complicated history. After that surgery, he developed an infection in his spine—the screws loosened and he almost fell—which required the third surgery with six units of IV, antibiotics. The incision was T2-T2. He was admitted to Emory Decatur for 4 weeks. Seifu stood out during that admission for being so professional and always providing care with compassion and dignity.

After being discharged, a follow-up CT showed the infection had not completely cleared. He then had two more surgeries to remove the hardware. He was then readmitted to Emory Decatur for rehab again.

After admission, Seifu came to our room not as our nurse, but just to say hello. That meant a lot to have been remembered and for someone to welcome us. He saw me in the hallway, recognized me, and asked for our room number. Seifu then was our nurse for many shifts. He was always pleasant, and on-time with meds, which was very important to help with the pain. Giving antibiotics and pain meds on time was important to us. He explained any questions we had. He wanted to make my husband comfortable with each visit. He made my husband feel he was not a burden or annoying.

Besides being a great and conscientious nurse, Seifu is a wonderful person who helped to ease our difficult circumstances. We also want to recognize other staff for being on time, considerate, and always helpful.