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A young girl was recently admitted to the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) for a brain tumor. Based on the excellent care provided to this patient and her family, the PICU team received the 2021 Team DAISY Award. In the nomination, the patient’s mother gave special shoutouts to those who left lasting impressions: Janie Rexrode, Katie Hurdle, Becca Eudailey, Courtney Pinelli, Stacy Williams, Kallie Mann, Mia Campbell, Clare Simasek, Caitlin Giovannini, Amy Cesak, and Kaitlyn Tompkins. Read the full story below.

“My husband and I would like to nominate the staff of the PICU for the Team DAISY Award. Earlier this year, my daughter was diagnosed with a brain tumor, which required immediate surgery and resulted in a three-week post-operative stay in the PICU. My husband and I want to share our experience and my personal perspective with the PICU as both parents of a patient as well as a Neurosurgery/ENT nurse at UVA Medical Center. Yes, I'm a UVA neurosurgery nurse by trade, and my daughter has a brain tumor; probably a PICU nurse’s worst nightmare on paper.

“Let's face it, PICU nurses mend not only their pediatric patients but also nurse the entire family through the trauma of pediatric illness. This team of nurses, therapists, Social Work, Pharmacy, Nutrition Services, (and yes, even the doctors) could not have been more amazing. It would be hard to nominate just one member of the team because each one that we interacted with (either in direct care, team lead, charge nurse, or just a nurse in the hall) played a significant role in our daughter’s recovery.

“I would like to highlight a few unforgettable moments:

“Kaite H. - Katie admitted us from the Emergency Department. What a difficult job to receive a patient (and their parents) immediately after such a grim and life-changing diagnosis, but she did it with ease. She completed a thorough admission assessment and talked to my husband and I about the PICU and what we should expect the remainder of that day/evening. She gave us the space we needed as we cried, talked to specialists, received family members, all while actively managing our daughter’s increased intracranial pressure. She asked thoughtful questions about our daughter (and us) so that she would know some personal details to pass on to the night shift nurse. Katie made us feel like we were in the right place and that we would be well cared for.

“Janie R. - Janie was exactly the clinician we needed for pre-op and post-operative care. Janie is an amazing clinician and handled managing our daughter post-surgery like a skilled neurosurgery nurse. She also encouraged me to be as much ‘nurse’ or as much ‘mom’ as I wanted. She used gentle encouragement to get our daughter up into the chair on post-op day one and was meticulous in her assessments. She genuinely listened to my list of concerns and shared during rounds what my thoughts were about what medications I thought would be helpful. Also, she patiently wrapped (and rewrapped) the best turban, even after the intern kept messing it up.

“Stacy W. - Stacy was our nurse the night before surgery, and we probably drove her nuts!!! Stacy helped manage the flow of visitors that came to see our daughter that night before. She helped usher people in and out and patiently waited as our church prayer team prayed both inside and outside of the room. She delicately advised us when she thought too much was too much and let us leverage her when we were ready to encourage people to leave. Stacy also made sure to stop by with Alfie during her day off, so our daughter could have some dog therapy.

“Becca E. - Becca was a standout as a nurse that we experienced on both night shift and day shift during our stay. Becca witnessed some terrible nights post-surgery with our daughter’s violent thrashing. During one of these episodes, our daughter managed to pull out her arterial line. Becca ran across the room, practically dove over the bed, and applied immediate pressure. Thanks to her quick reflexes and ability to leap over the bed, it prevented a potential serious blood bath from taking place. Literally, I think there were only six drops of blood on the sheet. Pretty amazing for an unplanned A-line removal! Becca also facilitated with therapy to get our daughter outside and in the fresh air. What a logistical nightmare as we pushed wheelchairs, monitors, the EVD [external ventricular drain], and collection bag.

“Kallie M. - Kallie is an amazing night nurse both for the patient and the family. She recognized that I refused to sleep, and instead, I would sit up and watch our daughter’s monitor all night long. One night, Kallie came into the room, quieted the alarms, angled the monitor away from me, sat next to our daughter, and told me to sleep. That was the first time I felt safe enough to sleep more than 20 minutes.

“Courtney P. - Courtney had a very special way of consoling us parents when we were emotionally spent. She was our nurse on a subsequent admission to the PICU. Courtney assisted our daughter after a three-hour sedated MRI, and our daughter did not come out of sedation well. Knowing our daughter’s history, Courtney advocated for additional medications in her gentle-yet-firm southern accent. Besides being a great nurse, Courtney is also a hilarious storyteller. Each morning, our daughter would eagerly await for Courtney to share a story about her dog. It's the little things (like a silly story) that can brighten a day.

“We also had great experiences with meeting each charge nurse that came on duty, each team lead, and every nurse that was in the peripheral. We had nurses change our couch and chair linens when we weren't looking. I wish I remembered the name of the nurse that chased me down the hallway and bear hugged me when I collapsed in the middle of a panic attack. She (and Kirsten, team lead) comforted and consoled me. Their care and concern was so appreciated during such a dark time.

“Besides the nurses, our daughter's team included pediatric physical therapy (PT)/occupational therapy (OT) as well as Child Life. Surgery left our daughter with hemiparesis of her left side. She needed to learn how to walk again and regain some function of her arm.

“The therapy dream team of Clare S. (PT) and Caitlin G. (OT) were imperative for our daughter’s success to rehabilitate during her hospitalization. Their cheerful nature, knowledge of therapy, and ability to work as a team makes them an outstanding duo.

“Both Clare and Caitlin were also excellent in teaching my husband and I how to assist with exercises, range of motion, and massage. They taught my husband how to help our daughter stand, and he was able to do a stand-up hug. Such a small thing that meant so much to us.

“Child Life Services (Amy and Katilyn) were so helpful with explaining each procedure in a child-friendly way, being present during procedures as needed, and helped set schedules and goals for our daughter. They are a huge asset to the PICU team.

“We would be remiss to not mention the PICU leadership of Dr. Spaeder. We felt that our participation in rounds was welcome, he acknowledged our concerns, and we observed his mentorship of the residents that were on his service.

“In closing, we would like to share that through our observation, not a single nurse or therapist skipped a step or tried to breeze through something for their own personal convenience. We've all seen lazy nursing in our careers, and the PICU is the exact opposite. They were ALL thorough, attentive, timely, proficient, and actively engaged in our daughter’s care. We are keenly aware that there will probably be future PICU visits throughout her illness, and there is nowhere we would rather be to receive care.”

Nomination edited for privacy and clarity.

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The Professional Nursing Staff Organization honors up to two UVA RNs each month with a DAISY Award. Nominations may be submitted by patients, patient families, visitors, and fellow UVA team members. Learn more at uvadaisy.com.