Family Infant Loss Lifestyle

Nurses Who Changed My Life + the “Amazing Nurse Contest”

During my story about baby Gianna, which began with my first post: Finding Out There Is Something Wrong With My Baby, I mentioned just a little about the care I was given, by nurses at the hospital. There are truly some amazing nurses out there! Although I had a week stay at the hospital, while on bedrest, none of those nurses made a huge impact on my life. However, there was a nurse or two who made my life very different during the delivery and recovery of my itty bitty Gianna. I mentioned previously that I was very blessed to have my deceased uncle’s ex-wife on duty when I was sent in for an emergency c-section. Her name is Joyce. Joyce typically works in Labor & Delivery, but this particular day, she was mine!

While there were several nurses, doctors, receptionists and anesthesiologists scurrying about my room, Joyce was there to be a calming force among the chaos. I never met Joyce before the day I delivered Gianna. She was new in my life, but she treated me like she had known me forever. I truly believe that this is just the kind of nurse and person that Joyce is. She was there by my side to talk me through the process, give me time to try and wait for hubby to arrive at the hospital before rushing into the OR, and above all, to be a calming force to my parents, whom I did need by my side. I recall looking over to the corner of my room and seeing Joyce tell my parents that they were going to have to scrub up and go with me into the Operating Room, since my hubby didn’t make it in time. I could tell my mom was nervous and slightly panicking. Joyce looked her calmly in the eyes, and told her that she could do this. “You got this!” She also told me that she would be there with me the whole time – and she was. She came into the OR, and was so absolutely calming to me, despite the many thoughts and chaos that was around us. I honestly cannot imagine going through this experience without Joyce’s calming presence. She was even there to check up on me after my loss. The power of a good – no, GREAT nurse, is life changing.

Then there was the nurse whom we never knew. I mentioned in my last post about the birth and death of my little girl, that there was a nurse who seemed to appear out of nowhere. I was never introduced to her, and neither were my parents. She just appeared while my parents were in the hallway, watching Gianna’s doctor working fiercely on her. She was over my mom’s shoulder, telling her everything that was going on. My mom has said on numerous occasions how comforting it was to have this nurse there. We never saw her again.

Because Gianna passed away 2 days after delivering via c-section, I still had one more day of recovering to do before they released me from the hospital. I remember coming back to my room after saying goodbye to Gianna, and being exhausted. For 2 days straight, I was up and down to the NICU, right after c-section, eagerly trying to pump as much breast milk as I could; and not to mention the emotional exhaustion I was facing. I came back to my room, and it looked like I was going to get a roommate. My new roommate would surely be a woman who was pregnant, and perhaps about to deliver. That was more than I could bare, while still grieving. I didn’t have to say much at all to my nurse, and she totally got it. She rescued me from having a roomate. Then there was something neat that the nurses did. They placed a little silver tear drop on the outside of my door. This was their silent way of showing any new nurses on duty, or other staff and visitors, that I was grieving, and to be tender with me. And indeed they were! This small act touched me dearly.

Not only did I want to tell you about some phenomenal nurses that I have encountered, but I wanted to tell you about an awesome “Amazing Nurse Contest”, by Johnson & Johnson. Until  6/29/12, you can nominate a nurse who has perhaps changed your life. This special nurse and his/her guest will attend the 2012 CNN Heroes: An All-Star Tribute show in Los Angeles, courtesy of CNN. He or she will also be honored in a video profile which will be screened before the live audience at the show, and featured on the Nursing Notesby Johnson & Johnson Facebook page. (*Eligible Nominees for the Amazing Nurses contest must be a Registered Nurse (RN), Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) or Advanced Practice Nurse (APN) who currently administers direct patient care.)

The healthcare field is experiencing a severe shortage of nurses, with a nationwide vacancy of over 100,000 positions, and that number is expected to grow to 800,000 by the year 2020! Those numbers astonish me! I can’t imagine going through the experience I went through without having some amazing nurses by my side. If you are thinking about a career change, then you may seriously want to consider nursing! They could use you, and you can help make the difference in the lives of many!

I would love for you to leave a comment and share an experience where a nurse has made a difference in your life!

 

“I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour by Mom Central Consulting on behalf of Johnson & Johnson and received a promotional item to thank me for taking the time to participate.”

About the author

Emily Buys

1 Comment

  • I am going back to school to be a NICU nurse. I hope that I can help families, like Joyce did for you!

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