Nominated by Tina Goble, RN Case Manager at Accentra Home Health, the following letter describes Betty’s incredible dedication to caring for others and her passion for nursing, touching the lives of everyone who knows her.

Betty Nowlin, R.N. is the closest nurse to a modern day Florence Nightingale I have ever had the pleasure of knowing and working with. She could have retired over ten years ago, but has such a compassion for those in need she continues to work as a home health nurse and make home visits to clients in their homes. She has ventured into places where you would think a four foot, ten inch, all of 110 pounds elderly woman would be afraid to go. She has climbed over fences, gates, through yards with large animals, and endured snow storms to get to her patients.

When you talk about someone who “goes the extra mile”, you must be talking about Betty Nowlin! She has driven everywhere from the cities to the remote areas in the rural areas that have no street signs. Some of the directions she has been given by clients have been, “You will know you are there when you see the the big green tractor out by the road, and if you see the neighbor’s cow, you’ve gone too far!”

She has encountered everything from storms, traffic jams, police officers, disgruntled family members, to places she had to wade through animal excrement, roaches, mice, biting dogs, cats and homes with no air conditioning or heat.

Betty has such a way with her patients that by the time she leaves their homes she is like a part of their families. Clients have baked her cookies, sent her cards, and always request her as their nurse when they need home health care. She has also provided food for those in need and assisted others in getting all the community resources available to her patients. We have so many veterans that are not aware of the resources available to them and she always asks if anyone in the home is a veteran and if they need assistance.

I could tell you story after story regarding Betty. I have tried to get her to write a book about her adventures in her nursing career, but she says she will some day after she gets through taking care of the “sick and wounded.” I doubt if she will ever write that book, which is a loss for the nursing profession, but she has touched more lives than anyone knows and she is not finished yet! The world is a better place with the blessing of this awesome little woman with a huge, compassionate heart. I can’t think of anyone who is more deserving of this award.

About the Compassionfirst Award

In the home health & hospice industries, we are fortunate to have some of the finest and most dedicated caregivers around. The Compassionfirst Award was created to honor caregivers who exemplify the very best of what home health and hospice organizations do - caring for others.

We are pleased to highlight Betty’s story of compassion and look forward to sharing other stories in the months to come.