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March 29, 2024

December 2019 Patient Letters

December 11, 2019

The following are excerpts from a few of the many recent letters, phone calls, and emails that we’ve received from grateful patients and family members. Together, they reflect the outstanding work done each and every day by VNSNY’s entire frontline staff.

Bronx—The mother of a patient with progressive multiple sclerosis sent the following email: “My daughter is currently bedbound and needs a catheter to drain her bladder. During the years that we have utilized VNSNY to help my daughter, we have been fortunate to have the services of nurse Donna Marku. Donna handles this task with great care, reducing discomfort while doing it as expediently as possible. We are totally impressed with her professional acumen. It is to the credit of your organization that you have an employee such as Donna who exemplifies the high standards of the Visiting Nurse Service of New York.”

A grateful patient sent in a Gift of Gratitude donation to VNSNY in the names of her VNSNY caregivers. “I was really privileged to have such a group of people during my time of need,” the patient stated. “I wish to express my gratitude to nurse Jennifer Paz-Riley, who is a true professional and a sweet lady. Also to physical therapist Lani Moraleta, who was so patient and also helped me move properly. My thanks to occupational therapist Darryl Austin as well, for understanding my moods. All of them excellent people and true to their professions. Thank you so much!”

Marsha Serrano-Ramos, Regional Vice President for VNSNY Home Care in the Bronx, extends kudos to nurse Fatima Shell- Sanchez for helping a passerby in need while she was heading to a scheduled patient visit in the Bronx late in the day, and to scheduler Lisa Burrell for providing Fatima with support throughout the process.

Brooklyn—A Brooklyn patient emailed, “I wanted to leave a glowing review for your physical therapist Hazel Morrison. Hazel came to my house and helped me after my knee surgery. She was very helpful, considerate, funny, knowledgeable, and generally great to have around. I attribute my fast healing and recovery process to her! Thanks.”

A patient and his wife phoned to compliment nurse Jessie Gutierrez, expressing their “sincere gratitude to Jessie for the exceptional job he is doing” in caring for the patient’s wound.

“I am writing to praise hospice social worker Gloria Quinteros and hospice nurse Venice Mondesir for the excellent services they provided to my mother over the past six months,” a VNSNY Hospice patient’s daughter wrote. “My mother developed an infection of her lungs in combination with COPD asthma. When I brought her back home from the hospital, Gloria and Venice were at her doorstep. I truly was able to exhale in relief that I was not alone in this journey. Gloria and Venice are highly skilled and extremely compassionate. The care and love and devotion my mother received from both of them is what I believe healed her. I am forever indebted to them and will certainly be calling for your services if my mother gets to that point again.”

The wife of a hospice patient gave a Gift of Gratitude to VNSNY in honor of VNSNY Hospice nurse Andrew Duncan. “Thank you for all the care and love you gave him from the first day we met until the last moment when Andrew closed his eyes,” she wrote. “My husband was very grateful for your service, and so were we.”

Manhattan—A grateful Manhattan patient sent in a Gift of Gratitude donation along with a note of thanks to nurse Sanath Luy. “Thanks for your expertise,” the patient wrote. “You were responsible for my complete recovery without infection.”

Another patient made a Gift of Gratitude contribution in honor of the VNSNY clinicians who helped her recover from knee surgery, with specific kudos to physical therapist Ruth Publik and physical therapy assistant Tina Glick. “Everyone was superb, and Ruth and Tina were especially great!” the patient noted.

“After recent hip replacement surgery, I was attended in my home by three remarkable women: my nurse Leslie Cohen, my physical therapist Gauri Shetye, and my occupational therapist Dina Klein,” wrote a Manhattan resident. “Each of them was professional, extremely competent and well organized and, most importantly, kind. I always felt they truly cared for my well-being and recovery. They taught me useful techniques and gave me good advice on personal care and function, always with a sweet and personable manner. I will miss them!”

“We are so very grateful to you!” a Manhattan couple wrote to physical therapist Linton Peixoto, in a note accompanying their Gift of Gratitude donation to VNSNY in his honor.

A patient sent a handwritten letter commending physical therapy assistant Farouk Khan and nurse Rosellie Hipolito for the care they provided. “Farouk is very kind, polite, courteous, and dedicated to the betterment of his clients,” the patient wrote. “It has been my pleasure and honor having him help me through my journey of physical therapy treatments. Also, Rosellie Hipolito was a great nurse.”

Another patient phoned to say that physical therapist Gil Esterban “is a wonderful therapist”—adding, “he is professional, and did a great job on the PT.”

“It is with great pleasure that I write regarding your nurse Huda Scheidelman,” noted a Manhattan resident. “My parents have lived in my apartment building for 11 years. They are both in their 90s and have needed increased care over the years—which is where Huda comes in! She was assigned to us years ago, and I have requested her every time since. She is so caring and so lovely and also so knowledgeable, especially about open wounds, which are often an issue with my parents. I really cannot say enough good things about her: her demeanor, her respect and kindness are exemplary. She’s a true professional in every sense of the word, and has a soothing way which is so essential.  I feel so fortunate that Huda is in our lives.”

The wife of a Manhattan patient sent a note praising the “exceptional work’ of Elsa Lam, Branch Director of Manhattan Branch 1. “In September, my husband had complications that resulted in severely swollen legs with blisters and enormous pain,” she wrote. “It was beyond my ability to provide the care he needed, so the doctor requested assistance from VNSNY. Elsa was professional, efficient, and patient in listening and answering my many questions. She took it upon herself to ensure that we got the supplies we needed and had them delivered promptly. What impressed us the most about her was that she was kind, comforting, knowledgeable and generous with her time, which means the world to a patient and their family dealing with difficult health issues. She made it possible for the same nurse to come, allowing for continuity in the case, which was important to us, and took time to check in with me to see how things were going. It has indeed been a stressful and difficult period. My husband is doing better now and we are very grateful for Elsa’s extraordinary care and efforts. Our gratitude and thanks to VNSNY and especially to Elsa.”

“A few months ago, I had hip surgery,” wrote another Manhattan patient. “Prior to the surgery, I requested that nurse Lisa Spedalle be assigned as my visiting nurse. I met Lisa seven years ago when she took care of my wife expertly. She is the consummate healthcare professional. She is knowledgeable, caring, and provided extra support and prodding what I needed to get out of bed and walk post-op. She brought a positive outlook and huge smile to every visit. My family and I greatly appreciated her and the great work of VNSNY. Thank you for providing care in the home!”

The relatives of a VNSNY Hospice patient who recently passed away sent a Gift of Gratitude contribution in honor of hospice nurse Lavaughn Coward and end-of-life spiritual care manager Kei Okada. “While a month has gone by since her passing, a day does not pass without us thinking about you both,” they wrote. “The care and kindness that you extended to her and to us, her family, made a huge difference. She died as she lived, at peace, in comfort, and with dignity. Thank you both.”

Queens—A Queens resident sent a letter of thanks to VNSNY Hospice lead bereavement counselor Willis Partington for the recent VNSNY Hospice Memorial Service that he helped organize. The service for bereaved family members of hospice patients was held on October 27th in at St. Michael’s Church in Manhattan. “It is with our deepest appreciation and gratitude that my dearly departed husband, our family, friends and I thank you for the beautiful, moving and comforting memorial service you and VNSNY planned, organized and conducted yesterday,” she wrote. “Thank you for enabling all of us to take another gentle step towards closure by experiencing this truly amazing therapeutic event.”

A Queens patient sent a note of “recognition and appreciation praising the “outstanding” wound care she received from nurse Nancy Girlando.

The daughter of another patient wrote to say that nurse Jackie Cato-Lee “has been attending to our mom at home since she was released from the hospital and she has been exceptional! Our family has been extraordinarily fortunate to have her taking care of my mom. I live out of state and Jacqueline has always made sure she has provided me with updates on her status. She is extremely knowledgeable and delivers health services in a very kind way. She’s supportive, patient, answers all of our questions, and treats my mom with upmost respect. She’s also very helpful to the home health aides and makes sure they are on the same wavelength when it comes to care. Thanks for having such a wonderful and extraordinarily competent person in your organization.”

A Queens patient phoned to express “how wonderful” the services of physical therapist Eun Ha and senior occupational therapist Gladys Bayles-Panes had been. “Both of them are excellent professionals, and I’m greatly improved with all of their help,” she said. “I will recommend VNSNY to anyone.”

“I am writing this letter to let you know how helpful your social worker Elza Moskowitz was to our family,” noted the sister of a Queens patient. “My brother had some medical issues this year and was lucky enough to have her assigned. She has provided us with wonderful information regarding resources, and her kindness helped us get through some difficult issues. She certainly went above and beyond in assisting us and we are very grateful. She is absolutely an asset to your company and makes an unbearable situation much easier to deal with. Thank you!”

“Thank you very much,” another Queens patient wrote to nurse Nina Miro while sending a Gift of Gratitude contribution in Nina’s honor. “You helped me for three months and did a good job.”

Staten Island—“I would like to commend nurse Irina Sadomova,” noted a Staten Island resident who required home care while recovering from surgery. “She faithfully came to my home, always on time, and always ready to administer the medication and bandages on my foot. She applied moisturizing cream to my foot and was caring and never in a rush. She also advised me regarding diet (I’m a diabetic), answered any questions I asked, and coordinated suggestions about better medications with my vascular surgeon. Irina was an asset to my healing process.”

Westchester—The daughter of a Westchester patient penned a “long overdue letter of praise” for the care provided to her mother by nurse Escel Marada-Lagdamen following her mother’s hospitalization for newly diagnosed congestive heart failure. “We only had the pleasure of having Escel assigned to Mom for a few short weeks, but she made all the difference in the world to us, her family, as well as to our 91-year-old mother,” she wrote. “There were several times when she arrived just when we were beyond stressed out about yet another medication change. She calmly assessed the myriad of problems and solved them all in short order. She was professional, competent, calm, caring and smart. I cannot say enough good things about Escel. She made us feel that Mom was in competent hands. While we are glad Mom is out of crisis for now, we do miss Escel. She deserves great praise and appreciation for a job so well done.”

To read the 2019 CHOICE Commendations, click here.