Vice President

Patient Care

Barnes-Jewish Hospital

St. Louis, MO 63110

On behalf of my niece, Karen Weir, I wanted to commend the extraordinary nursing skills of KAY GUNDY. This is a woman who has become very important to our family over the last two months. She has done so much for Karen above and beyond what is required, that I wanted to take a minute and share our high regard for Kay with you.

We were all aware when the population on the rehab. floor would grow and the number of patients would increase. And we observed when the number of staff decreased. But regardless of the growing ratio of patients to nurse, Kay always made time to inform Karen and often the rest of us, what Karen could expect. She always treated Karen and all her family with great respect and provided perspective of where Karen was in the great scheme of things, was she making progress, was the pain to be expected. When Kay was on duty, she would always tell Karen an approximate time when she’d be coming by. She’d be Karen’s eyes on the floor: what else was happening on the rest of the floor. She’d inform Karen as to how much time she’d be able to spend with Karen and always Kay let Karen know how much she was looking forward to seeing her.

And Kay’s nursing skills are equal to her wonderful people skills. She always informed Karen of what medication she was about to receive and what each drug’s purpose was. To this day, as Karen takes her medication she or any member of her immediate family can name the drug and what its purpose is. Kay also contributed greatly to Karen’s improving sense of her self. Kay would bathe her, wash her hair. Powder her. Make her feel clean and feminine and relaxed and loved. All of us who would be visiting Karen came to be very glad to see Kay pop in with an update or when she could, to stay a while and talk. She taught me skills so that I could assist Karen but Kay treated me as someone who could learn to help too. What Kay taught me is still being repeated back, step by step.

Karen is back in the hospital receiving her final round of therapy now that her halo has been removed and I am looking forward to seeing Kay again. She is as cherished as any member of our family. You are so lucky to have someone of her high caliber on your staff. We were so lucky to have her available to Karen. She is a wonderful, compassionate, trusted, decent person and nurse.

On behalf of my niece,

Karen Weir,

Sincerely yours,

Mindy Keyser