Barbara A Schaetzal
November 2024
Barbara A
Schaetzal
,
MSN, RN, FNP
Mother/Baby
AdventHealth Shawnee Mission
Merriam
,
KS
United States
We adore her for her natural empathy and ability to support her patients emotionally and physically.
While having my first baby was exciting, as a patient, I was scared, yet grateful, that this was my first time at 34 in a hospital and receiving an IV. I was prepared, but nothing about my birth went according to my plan - being induced, laboring for 2.5 hours, an emergency cesarean, and a day of high blood pressure plus elevated liver counts. The staff gracefully navigated all of these issues to bring our baby safely earthside.
But as I woke in a haze during the magnesium treatment, this nurse was there to explain to me the treatment we had overcome and what we could expect in the next few days. Her words were powerful and calming: “You have been through a lot, and we are here to take care of you”. She asked for a second opinion when my shakes seemed to ensue leading us to solve that yes, my blood sugar was dropping after nursing. She called lactation when I just seemed frustrated and unable to breastfeed to solve that, yes, we indeed needed a tongue tie procedure. But it was her intuition and medical experience that she could sense my unease and asked me, “would you like to talk to the pediatrician once more before the procedure?” She consistently listened to my worry and met those concerns with kindness and empathy while seeking data and the doctors to bring me confidence as we made decisions.
She will forever have a special place in our hearts when she listened as my husband and I were upset by my parents’ reaction to the lack of communication from us during our baby’s arrival. They wanted more updates, and we were exhausted. When my parents came to visit, my husband and I were nervous. During her rounds, she greeted my parents with kindness and love. She told them how strong we were, how healthy our baby was and most important to me, she told my parents that my husband was the most involved, active husband and dad, that they had a great son-in-law. He had been an incredible caretaker to me and our baby. The room’s tension eased, and we refocused our expanded family on the joy of our healthy baby. We adore her for her natural empathy and ability to support her patients emotionally and physically. She embodies AdventHealth’s mission and goals.
But as I woke in a haze during the magnesium treatment, this nurse was there to explain to me the treatment we had overcome and what we could expect in the next few days. Her words were powerful and calming: “You have been through a lot, and we are here to take care of you”. She asked for a second opinion when my shakes seemed to ensue leading us to solve that yes, my blood sugar was dropping after nursing. She called lactation when I just seemed frustrated and unable to breastfeed to solve that, yes, we indeed needed a tongue tie procedure. But it was her intuition and medical experience that she could sense my unease and asked me, “would you like to talk to the pediatrician once more before the procedure?” She consistently listened to my worry and met those concerns with kindness and empathy while seeking data and the doctors to bring me confidence as we made decisions.
She will forever have a special place in our hearts when she listened as my husband and I were upset by my parents’ reaction to the lack of communication from us during our baby’s arrival. They wanted more updates, and we were exhausted. When my parents came to visit, my husband and I were nervous. During her rounds, she greeted my parents with kindness and love. She told them how strong we were, how healthy our baby was and most important to me, she told my parents that my husband was the most involved, active husband and dad, that they had a great son-in-law. He had been an incredible caretaker to me and our baby. The room’s tension eased, and we refocused our expanded family on the joy of our healthy baby. We adore her for her natural empathy and ability to support her patients emotionally and physically. She embodies AdventHealth’s mission and goals.