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Twenty-two years ago in April, Eleanor Bergin Ericson, BSN, RN, cared for a car accident victim admitted to the Surgical Intensive Care Unit who ultimately would have his legs amputated above the knees. The body image alteration was tragic for this 20-year-old man who had just gotten the courage to ask the girl of his dreams for a date.
The patient was the brother of Bergin Ericson’s SICU colleague, Margaret Bernazzani, RN, who has never forgotten the compassion Bergin Ericson extended to her brother and family.
“We, as a family, were so fortunate to have Ellie care for my brother,” Bernazzani said. “We knew his physical wounds would heal; our worries were his emotional and psychological sores.”
Bergin Ericson was the only nurse to whom Brian would respond “He would say things like, ‘She gets me,’” Bernazzani said. “So subtle, but so vital, her oneness with him and with all her patients allows her to enter into a healing relationship on many levels as dictated by the patient’s unique needs. This partnership becomes her commitment to her patients.”
Brian and his family are among countless people whom Bergin Ericson has touched in her 25 years at BWH. In recognition of her caring practice, she last night received the Mary S. Fay Essence of Nursing Award, the hospital’s highest honor for nurses.
“Ellie’s ability to deliver expert care with the utmost compassion truly illustrates the essence of Nursing,” said Mairead Hickey, PhD, RN, chief nursing officer and senior vice president of Patient Care Services. “Her dedication to her patients, families and the practice of Nursing make her an example to not only nurses, but to all caregivers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital.”
The committee charged with selecting the recipient faced a difficult decision between Bergin Ericson and four exemplary finalists: MaryAnne Bennett, BSN, RN, of the NICU; Marian Fitzgerald, RN, of 14AB; Karen Reilly, BSN, MBA, RN, of 12ABC; and Marjorie Rogers, BS, RN, CCRN, of the MICU.
“These nurses are among the very best, and deserve recognition for the excellent care they provide to our patients each day,” Hickey said. “That the selection process was difficult is good; it means that we have many nurses practicing at the highest level of their profession, making our patients and their families the true winners.”
All BWH nurses last night were honored at the annual Nurse Recognition Dinner at the Westin Hotel in Waltham. A video featuring nurses in action throughout the institution and remarks by Hickey and Bergin Ericson were highlights of the evening.