One of my favorite moments in my career occurred during my pediatric rotation in nursing school. I was assigned to a newborn with an extremely rare infectious disease, and his mother was incredibly overwhelmed. I learned that day that caring and compassion are not just limited to the patients that we care for.
When I entered the room, it didn't feel like I was in a hospital. His mom had hung cute curtains, the scent of lavender filled the air, and lullabies played quietly on a little stereo. As she shared her story with me, she began to cry. I did my best to comfort her and offered to keep an eye on her baby, so she could take a moment to get some food or something to drink. But when she came back, she was still tearful because she had an appointment, and she didn't want to leave her newborn alone for a moment. Even though my shift was about to end, I told her I'd spend the rest of the day with her little one so that she could go to her appointment. I did bottle feedings, changed his little diapers, administered medications, and took vitals around the clock.
The baby's mom called to say she was running late and told me it was ok to go home. I held my little patient one last time and tucked him into bed. Then I wrote a simple note for his mother, saying, "Your little angel did great today."
The next week, even though I'd moved to a different floor of the hospital, the mother found me and hugged me, thanking me profusely for taking care of her newborn.
I often look back on that experience as a reminder that so often the patients we treat, and especially their families, need someone to listen, support, and nurture them too.
Nursing isn't just about the technical help we can provide; it's also about the compassion we show serving as a patient's advocate in any way we can. Although this memory was never documented, it will remain forever in my heart.
For more stories like this one, read Off the Chart A Nurse's Journey of Heart and Humor https://amzn.to/3RHn0nm
Published by Jennifer Tipton / This post may contain affiliate links.