Corrie has been one of most incredible nurses we had during our two months in the CICU. She was not only knowledgeable and on task with our son's many needs, but she did not mind me asking questions, explaining them in detail and honestly (even when that was hard) and she let me be involved as much as possible in our son's care. If I asked to be present for something or to be alerted when certain test results came in, she always came through. She learned our son's rhythms and was able to anticipate his needs before they occurred, keeping him stable. It was always an easier shift for him when Corrie was his nurse or ECMO tech.
Corrie became a nurse I could trust from early on. With my personality, I'm more likely to ask questions of someone I have grown to know and trust. Corrie became one of these nurses for me. Watching her care for him, the way she would handle him, his needs, dealing with his episodes, his numerous medications, making sure he was well cleaned and his bed was organized so anyone could follow the many cords, won me over quickly. I could tell that nursing was more than a just a job for Corrie. She truly cared for my son. It won this mom's heart over.
I remember many times when I talked with Corrie about him. One of these times, early on after his second surgery, before we tried to take him off ECMO for the first time (after his second surgery that is), I asked her about the amount of medication he was on, which was a lot, the need for trying to wean him off as much of those as they could, and what would happen if they couldn't. Anyone who has been around CICU for a while will know the answer to those questions is not easy and anyone who knew him would know that his situation was not good. Corrie answered the questions honestly and with grace that allowed what I suspected to sink in. The night before our son's third heart surgery, Corrie was in our room as our ECMO nurse. We were confident that going through the third surgery was our son's only chance at life, even if it was a small chance but obviously we were nervous. My husband had to leave to go back to KY and I was at the hospital alone trying to process all that was going on. Corrie sat with me and just let me talk. She answered my questions, she knew my heart, and she encouraged me. She took the time not only to care for our son's needs but for our family overall.
There are so many times in which Corrie made us feel comfortable. I bought a hand/foot impression kit that came along with a frame and had it shipped to the Ronald McDonald House. At this point, I knew that the odds of him living through all this were not high and I wanted to have some things to remember him by if he indeed did pass. I wanted to make the impressions but with him on ECMO I was leery to try. I asked Corrie if she would be willing to help me. She made me feel like this was not a crazy request. She and another nurse helped me get the impressions I wanted. Now they hang in the frame with a picture of him on a wall in my bedroom and are one of my most cherished memories of him. Even more importantly is the afternoon he passed away. Corrie was a charge nurse in another pod that day but stopped by before he came off of ECMO to see him and us, wishing us the best. After he passed, Corrie came by to see us, give her condolences, and see him. She checked in on us a couple times before we left that evening. It meant the world to me that even though she was not our nurse that day that she was still there. It was incredibly special to my husband and I that we were able to thank her and say goodbye that evening as we held our little boy in our arms for the last time. Her care for him, her times with me, the relationship we formed meant a lot during our time there and truly made our time in the CICU better.
The day after Thanksgiving, Child Life and I had arranged an exception to allow my whole family in our son's room at once (he was our 7th child) so that we could have a family picture with him in it and a picture of all 7 kids together. Corrie was our nurse that day. She helped plan our son's care for that day around the time that we were going to do the pictures, helped me get him ready, made sure he was covered up, so the kids did not see his open chest or the ECMO tubes, etc. Another time included our son's 3rd time trying to come off ECMO where Corrie was able to recommend the use of certain medications over others because she knew what he responded to best. Corrie knew him well and was always able to communicate to others how to get the best responses from him (as well as what would not get a good response from him). And I loved the times that Corrie would give him his bath as she always let me help out. I couldn't do much for my baby bear in regards to his care so even the little bit that I could help out was greatly appreciated.