When I was in labor, I was blessed to have been cared for by Beth Maurer. Beth displayed an extraordinary level of compassion, care, and love towards me, my family, and our birth experience.
My husband and I arrived at the hospital in the morning with labor pains and contractions. Beth was the first nurse we interacted with in the triage room. Our experience started off with the friendly welcome from Beth as she assessed my pain. Once it was decided that I was going into labor I was moved into my labor room. My IV was in and I was going through the different options for pain relief. Beth was very helpful with the use of the jacuzzi in the bathroom, along with suggesting other ideas for helping me cope with contraction pain.
As we started to get into the afternoon, Beth and my husband both carefully watched the monitors and noticed that our baby's heart rate was dropping. This drop in her heart rate happened several times. The first few times Beth was very sweet and came in without causing me worry to re-adjust me in hopes that it would alleviate the problem. She maintained constant contact with my OB but didn't alarm me yet.
As the day grew into the evening, Beth started to say her goodbyes to me, as she would be going off shift at 7. I was pretty sad saying goodbye to Beth as she had become a source of comfort and peace for me. I referred to her as "my angel" throughout the day, but I understood that she couldn't stay all night as she had her own life. Around 7:30 pm, our situation started to become more serious as the baby's heart rate dropped for the fourth time. My doctor came in with a group of nurses to tell my husband and I that it was time for an emergency C-section. I was very scared and shocked as this came on so quickly. I looked up and saw Beth coming over to me to help prepare me for surgery. It didn't dawn on me at the time, but she chose to stay to be with me. Beth went into the OR room with me and knelt down by my face, talking me through my worries. She held my hand tightly as she spoke the calmest and most reassuring words I think I have ever heard. Once my husband was able to come in, she took his phone and started taking pictures of the surgery. My husband's phone died during the birth and Beth ran out to my parents to get another phone so she could take pictures for us! This was incredible and we cherish all the pictures she took.
One of my favorite parts of the whole experience was that she was the first person to show me my baby. She brought our daughter over to us and then helped me to nurse the baby for the first time. I was then taken to the recovery room, and after some time there I was moved to my room in the mother and baby wing. As I was being wheeled into the room I saw Beth putting on her coat and getting ready to go home. This had to have been close to 930- 10:00 PM. It meant so much to my family and I that Beth stayed to be there for us. I know how hard nurses work and that is a very long day. Before she left I asked her to come and see me if she was working the next day and she reassured me that she would.
The next morning I woke up to Beth checking in on my husband and I. I thought she was just there to say hello, and that made me so happy! Then she proceeded to tell me that she was working the day shift in the mother and baby wing and requested to take care of me. I started to sob because my heart was so happy to have her there to take care of all of us. The fact that she would request to continue her care for us meant so much to me. She helped me through my first shower after the surgery and with all of the little things like washing my hair and putting on make-up that helped me feel better. It was a wonderful first day with the baby.
I was dreading saying goodbye to Beth another time. Before she came in to say goodbye, the new nurse on shift came and introduced herself. She was another nice lady but had big shoes to fill after Beth. The new nurse on shift started filling me in about the heel prick test that our baby had to go through. This poor nurse didn't know how emotional I was and delivered the news in a way that caused me to become upset and anxious. As Beth came in to say goodbye, she could see that I was visibly upset. I filled her in on why and she reassured me that our baby would be okay. I will never forget how she climbed up into my bed, put her arm around me and walked me through what our baby was going to have to do with the test. She reassured me that she would be okay and so would I. She showed so much compassion and love towards me. Instead of making me feel like I was overreacting or being overbearing, she expressed her understanding and was very sensitive to my needs. My parents were in the room and were equally as impressed by our care from Beth as my husband and I were.
When I think back to my labor and delivery experience, it brings tears to my eyes because it was such a beautiful experience. I chalk a lot of this up to my time with Beth. I greatly look forward to our future experiences with the labor and delivery team. The Community Hospital is beyond blessed to have Beth as part of their team. She is a fantastic representative of the hospital and embodies the characteristics and traits of an amazing nurse. My husband and I have since returned to visit Beth and show her how our baby has grown. Every time I see Beth, I start to cry because she has become such a beautiful part of our life story.