Kathryn Carpenter

I would like to nominate Kathryn Carpenter for the DAISY Award.  A few months ago, we had an 18 or so month patient in the CVICU who suffered a severe neurological injury after a prolonged cardiac arrest. Prior to hospital/surgery, this was a developmentally normal, active, thriving child. After the cardiac arrest, however, she was a totally different child. She eventually weaned and extubated from the ventilator, but she was unable to interact with her surroundings: she couldn’t play; she couldn’t eat or drink; she could barely move purposefully; she had uncontrollable seizures; she stared in one direction without focusing or following.

Frequently, when we have children in critical care who are developmentally injured, we tend to focus more on the patients who are able to interact. Well, that was not the case with Kathryn. Kathryn hardly ever left the baby’s side. I walked into the unit; Kathryn was at the front desk on the phone holding the baby.  Later in the week, I walked past her room, Kathryn was sitting at the computer charting…holding the baby.  She talked to her, she held her, she played with her, she loved her.  Over the next few days to weeks, the baby began to cry when Kathryn returned her to her bed.  So, there went Kathryn…holding the baby- again.

The patient’s parents, after hearing the news of their daughter’s neurologic devastation, began to stop visiting.  Days would go by without a family member visiting.

It’s so easy to neglect those patients who we have classified as not capable of doing or understanding or those cases where we don’t feel that what we do will make a difference in the log term outcome.  Kathryn truly went above and beyond her calling when caring for this young child.  I count it a true privilege and an honor to work with a nurse who has such love, devotion, compassion, and patience.