Amy Gempeler
April 2021
Amy
Gempeler
,
RN
Emergency Services
UW Health University Hospital
Amy was cool-headed, compassionate, and professional all at once
When a family member was admitted to the UW ER, he was conscious but fading due to blood loss. Amy Gempeler was his ER Nurse. He knew this was terminal and Amy did as well. While he was still conscious and able to talk, Amy helped him to make several phone calls to loved ones. We were buried under a heavy snowstorm that morning which delayed us in getting in as fast as we wanted to.
Amy was there with him, assisting with dialing and multitasking his needs and comfort as he was fading. She was aware of time being precious. Amy was cool-headed, compassionate, and professional all at once. I would describe her handling of this chaotic time as expert-like.
When we arrived at the ER, he lost consciousness but was still alive. Amy cleaned him, touched him, comforted him, and spoke to him the whole time. This was exhausting and took hours. Just remarkable care and professionalism.
Something that stood out to me was that even though he was unconscious and was not going to regain consciousness, Amy continued to soothe, touch, speak and care. She was truly being a Nurse. She also moistened his lips with a wet swab as he was still breathing with his mouth open and his lips were dry. Amazingly, he responded every time she did this and sucked on the wet swab.
It is probably not fair to compare, but after he was transferred out of Amy's care no other nurse or staff came close. Even though he was alive for six more hours, no other caregiver thought to give him the moist swab that he seemed to enjoy. I asked if someone would, and it did not happen. There was nothing wrong with the care and attention from the other Nurses or caregivers, but no one was near the level of Amy Gempeler. She helped us and she helped him. Amy gave him gentle care, tenderness, and compassion in his last moments, and most importantly she managed to give him dignity.
In times like this, it is hard for family members or loved ones to control emotions and I don't think any of us are at our best under the circumstances. We can look back with complete clarity and be grateful for Amy. She was remarkable and we are truly grateful to have had her with us on that terrible day. We also know that he was as well.
We appreciate Amy and thank her for being there.
Amy was there with him, assisting with dialing and multitasking his needs and comfort as he was fading. She was aware of time being precious. Amy was cool-headed, compassionate, and professional all at once. I would describe her handling of this chaotic time as expert-like.
When we arrived at the ER, he lost consciousness but was still alive. Amy cleaned him, touched him, comforted him, and spoke to him the whole time. This was exhausting and took hours. Just remarkable care and professionalism.
Something that stood out to me was that even though he was unconscious and was not going to regain consciousness, Amy continued to soothe, touch, speak and care. She was truly being a Nurse. She also moistened his lips with a wet swab as he was still breathing with his mouth open and his lips were dry. Amazingly, he responded every time she did this and sucked on the wet swab.
It is probably not fair to compare, but after he was transferred out of Amy's care no other nurse or staff came close. Even though he was alive for six more hours, no other caregiver thought to give him the moist swab that he seemed to enjoy. I asked if someone would, and it did not happen. There was nothing wrong with the care and attention from the other Nurses or caregivers, but no one was near the level of Amy Gempeler. She helped us and she helped him. Amy gave him gentle care, tenderness, and compassion in his last moments, and most importantly she managed to give him dignity.
In times like this, it is hard for family members or loved ones to control emotions and I don't think any of us are at our best under the circumstances. We can look back with complete clarity and be grateful for Amy. She was remarkable and we are truly grateful to have had her with us on that terrible day. We also know that he was as well.
We appreciate Amy and thank her for being there.