Nomination Letter
Written by the client’s mother Michelle G.
It is with great pride that I nominate Ms. Sarah for the 2023 Best and Brightest Caregiver of the Year. She has been helping our family care for our adult son, Keoni. Keoni is recovering from Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) sustained from a motorcycle accident in Guam. When we met her, our first thought was that she reminded us so much of a very special nurse who cared for Keoni during his stay at Guam Memorial Hospital. Ms. Sarah was very attentive to our wants and desires for the type of care we were seeking. She welcomed the daily checklist that my daughter helped put together, which included specific tasks to be completed and writing down the highlights of the days’ events to share with the rest of our family. I’ll never forget how, understanding that Keoni was 27 years old and having asked him what his favorite type of music was, Sarah came up with the “best rapper” game as an exercise to stimulate Keoni’s mind and help him engage his voice after he had only just started making sounds a couple days prior to her first day.
From the moment we met Ms. Sarah, my husband and I knew that she was a person of compassion, strength, and determination to do whatever she could within the limits set forth to help our son recover from this tragic event. She would enter our home with a smile and warm greeting, always asking how things were since she last saw us. One of the many things we appreciate is how she takes time to talk and observe Keoni’s reactions, his needs, likes, and dislikes. She adjusts her plan for that day to ensure she maximizes every opportunity to help him improve.
As previously mentioned, on her first day she took the time to ask Keoni what type of music he likes. When he answered with rap music, she then turned around and made a game. Not only did the game engage his voice, but it also allowed him to make decisions on something he liked. Also on her first day, we shared with Ms. Sarah the importance of Keoni’s elliptical exercises as part of his rehab. He initially wouldn’t engage in the activity, but Ms. Sarah took the initiative to motivate him by cheering him on. She even helped him execute the machine by pushing/pulling the handles. During breaks, she helped him practice relaxation techniques and breathing exercises to get him prepared to start the exercise again. She continues to motivate Keoni to do exercises as she understands that they are so important for his body and mind.
Since she began, she has come up with so many other exercises to combat Keoni’s boredom. Exercises such as wheeling in his wheelchair around the house to exercise his hands/arms, which also exercises his brain as he thinks about hand-wheel coordination. Just recently she had him stand with his walker and without any cues from us, his brain was able to signal his right foot to move forward, followed by his left foot: just as if he was going to walk again! Truly AMAZING!! Ms. Sarah reflects not only on what was accomplished each day, but also on what was not accomplished. She then comes the next day with fresh ideas or recommendations for activities.
We also appreciate how Ms. Sarah continues to keep our son so clean. We shared with her that Keoni was a medic before the accident. He worked as an Emergency Room Technician, was a flight medic in the National Guard, and he worked as a Program Analyst for the EMT certification program. Keoni was always reminding us of the importance of being clean to prevent illness and feel good! Because our son is now unable to control his bladder and bowel movements, he must either wear disposable briefs or a condom catheter and foley bag. This situation makes our son very susceptible to UTI. Ms. Sarah’s meticulous attention to this concern has helped to minimize UTIs as well as giving us peace of mind that our son is maintaining his preferred level of hygiene.
Sarah brings us great comfort and confidence, knowing that our son is well taken care of. Ms. Sarah is so patient, and she empowers Keoni to make his own decisions. As Keoni progresses, he starts to realize the state that he is in, which sometimes leads to frustration, anger, and depression. Ms. Sarah is able to recognize these feelings and allows him the time he needs to deal with them. She will encourage him to talk about them, meditate, or do some breathing activities. She is also cognizant of the fact that Keoni is an adult and capable of making decisions. She asks decision making questions (no matter how simple they may be) to give Keoni a sense of competency and independence, and continues to shed light in our son’ darkest moments.
Since Ms. Sarah started caring for our son, we have seen significant improvements in his ability to speak, his ability to move from bed to wheelchair, to transfer from his wheelchair to the car, but more importantly, we’ve seen our son grow in his cognitive skills. We are able to ask him questions involving math problems, such as addition and subtraction, spelling of words, and questions requiring him to go down memory lane. We’ve seen improvements in how he assists with the changing of his briefs, his clothes, standing with a walker, and latest accomplishment: using the toilet!!
Ms. Sarah is so greatly appreciated by my husband and I as she continues to help our son improve, both in body and mind. This in turn helps us. Every improvement made is one step closer to our son fully recovering from this unfortunate situation. Ms. Sarah also helps us with our individual well-being, as her time with Keoni allows us to take the break we need to rest and recharge so that we are able to provide the care necessary for our son. Taking care of an individual who is in my son’s condition takes a toll on your mind and body; Ms. Sarah understands that and comes to every session with the desire and focus to not only help Keoni, but to also help our family as well. She is truly an angel sent by God to be a blessing to our family.