As a staff nurse specialist in the Surgical Intensive Care Unit, David Spicknall has witnessed everything from miracles to heart-breaking disappointments.

"Every day is different," he says. "It's unusual for a day to go by that I don't learn something. The trick is not forgetting it."

While miracles happen, not all patient outcomes are perfect. Spicknall remembers one patient who spent many months in the unit trying to recover from severe illness.

"We all became very, very close to this gentleman," says Spicknall, a thoracic/cardiovascular specialist. "One day his condition deteriorated and he looked up and there was just a flash between us. He knew and I knew. A few minutes later he was gone. I'll never forget that."

Spicknall's devotion to patients earned him the Nursing Excellence in Clinical Education Award (staff nurse category), given by the Department of Nursing Services and Patient Care and the UI College of Nursing. In typically humble fashion, he says it's almost unfair to single him out for recognition.

"While I appreciate the award every much," Spicknall says, "there are many people here just as deserving of this award as I am."