Montel Williams loves his nurses. That’s why he came to New Orleans to speak to the chapter presidents of the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses at their annual AACN conference last week.

Montel knows nurses. He has had more than average contact with the likes of us, both in and out of the hospital. He told AACN attendees stories about his ordeals and how nurses were there to ease the way. Emotions were flowing as he spoke to us from the heart.

We loved hearing about how great we were, of course. Who wouldn’t want to hear such praise tumbling from the depths of a Media Super Star?

Lucky me. I was the only one allowed to interview him after he rocked the crowd with tales of his wrenching experiences. That’s right--me and Montel, sitting down together for a nice friendly chat.

Most of Montel’s healthcare history would make any parent cringe.

At the age of 3, he spent many days in a Baltimore ICU because he had fallen on a stick, which penetrated through his mouth almost to the back of his neck.

Less than a year later, he spent another stint with his nurses. This time, it was for an accidental spill that scalded the entire front of his chest and sent him to the burn unit.

Poor Little Montel, to have so many bad things happen to him at such a young age. Poor Montel’s mom and dad! They must have been a wreck.

There were other unfortunate instances, where Montel came to appreciate who nurses are and what we do.

When he was at the U.S. Naval Academy, a just-out-of-school physician thought he had found breast cancer in Montel. It wasn’t cancer, though; it was gynecomastia, a benign and transient condition commonly found in young men. But it was only after Montel had undergone a bilateral mastectomy that the truth was known.

Can you imagine the rage this physically fit and athletic young man in his prime must have felt when he found out? Whoever his nurses were back then, they certainly had their work cut out for them.

Around the same time, he almost exsanguinated from an unremitting nosebleed, which took 17 hours in the emergency room before its source was found and it could be stopped. Lots of nurse contact there.

And then there is Montel’s 10-year battle with MS, which by all appearances, he seems to be winning. Even so, we know multiple sclerosis is not an easy journey, no matter how well controlled. Oh, yes. We can’t forget about his mother’s lobectomy last year…more nurses.

In Montel’s eyes, nurses are unsung heroes who need to get more recognition. Knowing the importance of someone going to bat for you, in true show-biz style, Montel says, “YOU NURSES NEED AN AGENT,” And he is willing to take on that job. “You helped me. I want to help you,” he says.

Montel has a radio program now and wants to give nurses airtime. He is inviting nurses to come talk on his daily Air America talk show. He wants to give us a forum to tell our stories and to make sure we get the acknowledgement and respect he adamantly proclaims we should have.

I hope there are nurses out there who will take him up on his offer. If he wants to be our agent, let’s give him the chance to sing our praises to the millions who listen to him on his radio talk show.

After all, who knows the healing power nurses provide more than someone vulnerable and in need who has been there and experienced it all first hand. Montel has been there and knows, that’s for sure.