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How Southlake Nurses “Answer the Call”

Tuesday May 10, 2022

National Nursing Week is May 9-15 and we want to share incredible nursing stories from across Southlake. The theme this year is #WeAnswerTheCall. We asked staff from across Southlake to share their stories of how themselves or their colleagues have #AnsweredTheCall.

  • My family and I had a great experience at the COVID-19 Assessment Centre, thanks to a very skilled nurse. This can be a very stressful experience for a 4 year old, having experienced multiple PCR tests and knowing it can be painful. Stacey, a nurse in the COVID-19 assessment centre, has extraordinary skills at dealing with children and making them feel comfortable, and making them feel part of the process! We are so grateful Stacey helped our daughter during this stressful time! – A.N.
  • Being a nurse has been mentally, emotionally and physically exhausting even more so through a pandemic. But being that face, listening ear and that person for our patients especially during the hardest moments of their lives when families cannot be present has been rewarding. I care for my patients as if it is my own mother, father, grandparent, brother or sister. Just trying to be that bright positive person for our patients in their darkest moments means a lot. It’s been very trying times for everyone and we as a team have to help each and everyone through this. This pandemic one day will be past us. – L.S.
  • I would like to recognize the entire VNT Nursing team and acknowledge the great work that they do. The VNT team is the float team that works to complement staffing and replace sick calls throughout the organization. They are often responsible for opening and staffing overflow areas to support bed flow and relieve pressures in the Emergency Department. Every day that they come in, they do not know which unit they are going to be assigned. When they receive their assignments, they adapt to the unit and work hard to provide the best patient care. Sometimes during their shift, they get pulled to support areas with higher needs which, requires a great amount of flexibility. They have a broad knowledge and support all programs, with the exception of critical care. They are a great support to the organization! – H.W.
  • “I wanted to pass on that I was so impressed with the cancer care nurses. Alex was so helpful on Friday as she was able to facilitate a same day discharge for a sick patient who wanted to go home for palliation. I heard her in the background making multiple phone calls/filling out a ton of paper work to make it happen. Thanks to her efforts the patient was able to spend his last couple of days at home. Lindsay was also a rock star. I saw her engaging and at times advocating to the physicians to make sure they provided the timely care this man deserved. Her nursing assessment skills were also spot on and she was able to recognize when it was time to transition to comfort care. She paged the internist to see the patient and reassess goals and also paged me to make sure he had good symptom support.” – Dr. Kassam
  •  Happy Nurse’s Week to all the amazing RNU Nurses that I am grateful to work with. It’s been a few challenging years for everyone, but I am really thankful for your love, dedication, and caring in all that you do. You all are going above and beyond by always working as a team helping patients and families, mentoring new nurses, nurse externs, and always working in good collaboration with the all health care team. I really appreciate you all for making RNU the best team. – Zoe Marcu, RN, RNU
  • Happy Nurses Week to Tricia Clarke, RNU Nurse Educator, who is an amazing nurse and always goes above and beyond. Knowing Tricia for more than a decade, she is the nurse that you want to have on your side when needed. She is always available to the RNU staff, educating new nurses, answering questions regarding  policies, procedures, nursing skills and implementation of stroke education. Thank you Tricia for everything you do for all RNU staff. We really appreciate you! – Zoe Marcu, RN, RNU

  • Happy Nurses Week to Tammy Rogers, RNU Manager for always going above and beyond. On top of being the best Manager, Tammy is also an excellent nurse. For instance, in the late Friday afternoon, Tammy brought extra commodes to help out a nurse, and made sure the nurse was practicing IPAC policies for COVID-19 exposure precautions. She is always available to the staff anytime needed and always helps with answering call bells, phone calls at the nursing station, sometimes feeding patients and helping families. Thank you Tammy for all your hard work and dedication. – Zoe Marcu, RN, RNU
  • Several of our physicians and staff came together to recognize Marissa Weiler, Nurse Practitioner, Medicine Program. Marissa has been supporting our MAiD program at Southlake and has provided incredible dedication and leadership to her patients and colleagues.

    • “The success of our Restorative Care Unit over the years is in large part because of Marissa’s hard work and determination.  I first met Marissa when we opened the first RCU site, as a new Nurse Practitioner. It has been incredible to watch her develop this brand new role, while working on her own professional growth. Marissa gives 100% to everything that she does, often sacrificing of herself to ensure that her patients and colleagues feel supported and heard. It has been an honour to work alongside her, and watch as she continues shape our program, advocate for the role of the Nurse Practitioner, and make a huge impact on our organization.” – Dr. D. Srour
    • “Marissa’s leadership and advocacy work related to MAiD has had an immeasurable impact on the health care experience for a countless number of patients and their families. Her commitment to establishing a MAiD program has also had a significant impact on the clinicians at Southlake who provide care to patients with serious illness. Her nursing care is patient focused above all else and the two stories below highlight how she would move mountains to facilitate timely access to MAiD.” – Dr. A. Kassam
      • “Marissa got the ball rolling and was able to go through the MAid assessments within 2 days. The patient’s anxiety dropped significantly, and her family felt that this made a difference for her quality of life. They took the time to mention Marissa by name in the obituary.” -Dr. Liauw
      • “I had a patient in Bradford that wanted MAiD as soon as possible. Marissa went out of her way to drive after work to assess her. The family was so grateful for the support and her timely response. I too am very grateful for Marissa not only for this patient, but for her role in establishing the Southlake MAiD program.” -Dr. Baguio
    • “Marissa is a dedicated nurse, who puts patients and families first. Since joining the MAiD program I have been impressed with her devotion and commitment to creating the best experiences. I remember a time where Marissa was talking with a patient about medical assistance in dying, she kneeled down beside the patient to ensure she was talking face to face, she ensured privacy and was able to make the patient feel heard. After speaking with the patient, Marissa took the time to follow up with the family to ensure their questions could be answered. Marissa was able to put the patients and the families’ minds at easy and she even got the biggest smile from the patient who was so very thankful he was being heard.” –  B. Fowler
  • On the Surgical Short Stay unit we recognize the time and effort our patients put in to prepare for their procedures in general and orthopaedic surgery. Our team is dedicated to matching these efforts in their road to recovery, getting them home safely and efficiently.
  • Being an inpatient surgical nurse means working as a team to help patients on their journey to healing. We do everything we possibly can to keep them safe, healthy and happy until they are able to return home. Working on the surgery floor is like working with family, always supportive and looking out for each other, not just the patients.
  • Painful joints and fractured bones are both very painful and debilitating, impeding quality of life. Being an MSK nurse gives us the unique experience of improving quality of life for our patients who have had total joint replacements or repair of fractures.
  • “Whether it’s answering call bells, equipment alarms, bed alarms or telephones, #WeAnswerTheCall by working together as the biggest team in the Medicine Department. The RNU team provides exceptional patient care for neurological and medicine patients, and everything in between. For me, being a nurse and now educator on RNU means working with friends who became family. Over the past almost 15 years at Southlake, my dedication and loyalty to RNU has not wavered. I have a passion for neurological nursing and see the difference we all make in the lives of our patients each and every day. We have seen significant changes over the years and I’m grateful to have gone through the ups and downs with all of them. When I roam the halls of RNU and see the incredible work we all do day to day, it makes me so proud to be just one part of the bigger picture. Thank you to each of you for your dedication to compassionate patient care” – Tricia C