Healing via Snickers…Who knew?
Due to his declining health, one of our chronic ventilator patients had decided the previous week that he no longer wanted to live this way. Darcie was the nurse assigned to him on the day the ventilator would be turned off.
The family brought in two bags of candy that morning for the staff. One was a mixed bag of chocolates, the other a bag of Snickers with a note attached stating this was his favorite. Darcie came up with a grand idea! At 10:00 am she gave a Snickers bar to each of the family members present in the room. She told them she would like to have a Snickers toast on behalf of the patient. Darcie proceeded to melt a Snickers bar and placed a bit on the patient’s lips. Although the patient would not open his eyes, he licked his lips clean with a big smile on his face! The family was delighted and beaming as they enjoyed their final Snickers with the man they love!
The ventilator was turned off about an hour later. Darcie worked extremely hard to get the patient comfortable. After an hour of her efforts, the patient was finally resting comfortably. Darcie and the family remained with the patient until his peaceful death at 6 pm.
At his funeral, the family could not say enough good things about Darcie. Her actions were 100% patient driven. She was able to create a wonderful memory for this family for years to come. Her touch will last forever.
Thank you, Darcie, for being the nurse you are.