LT Johnson consistently goes above and beyond for her patients, I know, not only because I see her demonstrating this daily on the ward, but because I was one.
I was 34 weeks and 6 days pregnant, about to be 35 weeks. I had just returned home from a birthday party and was about to go to bed when unexpectedly I felt a 'pop' and a gush of fluid; my water had broken. I immediately went into panic mode - my water broke 5 weeks early, I had no idea what to do. Do I go to base even though I know I can't deliver there because I was too premature? Or did I go to the nearest hospital out in town? (I live in Catania) So, I called LT Johnson, because she knows everything L&D related. I wasn't sure if she would answer, because it was already 11 pm at this point, but she answered (albeit groggily) and I told her about my water breaking in the calmest voice I could muster. She calmed me down and told me to drive to the base hospital and get checked out.
The entire drive to the hospital, I was a mess. After working on the MSW for over a year and postpartum before that, I've heard all sorts of crazy delivery stories and horror stories of complications caused by a woman's water breaking too soon. I was even more of a mess because I couldn't feel my baby moving. By the time I got to the hospital, I was completely frazzled. LT Johnson drove to the hospital to check on me and my baby. I got hooked up to the monitors and heard my baby's heartbeat loud and clear. I was able to take my first big breath of relief, my baby was okay. LT Johnson continued to provide calming words of encouragement to help me relax and keep my blood pressure down. She even made jokes to help me release the tension I was holding onto.
While I was being monitored in the triage room, LT Johnson was working with the night shift nurses to get my transfer to a civilian hospital expedited; I was transferred out within the hour. Technically, I was supposed to be accompanied to the civilian hospital by the CNW nurse on duty. However, the nurse on duty was not a 1920 and did not feel comfortable accompanying me (in case I went into labor on the way there). LT Johnson didn't hesitate to volunteer to come with me. She rode with me, at zero dark thirty in the morning, to not one, but two hospitals out in town. Throughout the ambulance ride, she continued to talk to me and reassure me that my baby and I were going to be okay. When we got to the first hospital we discovered that they didn't have a NICU bed available for my baby so we were sent to another hospital. At the second hospital, LT Johnson stayed with me during the entire triage process to make sure that I was okay and everything was in order. It was almost 2 or 3 am by the time everything was said and done.
The next day, after some discussion with my primary OB, the decision was made to transfer me back to the first hospital. LT Johnson, again, volunteered to be the L&D nurse to accompany me during the ambulance ride. Again, she stayed with me during the triage process and made sure that all pertinent information was passed to the staff before returning to the base hospital with the ambulance crew.
Everything was going okay, for the most part after she left. I had some tests done and was monitored for a couple of hours before being transferred up to the OB ward. When I got to the ward, I was not placed on any type of monitor. I was told to let the ward staff know when I started to feel contractions. Up until this point, I was only feeling back pain/spasms, which I was told was nothing to worry about. Well, after a couple of hours the back pain began to grow in intensity. I started to get concerned, and told one of the nurses on the ward; I was again told that there was nothing to worry about. I didn't fully believe them, I thought that I was having back labor, so of course, who did I contact? LT Johnson! I texted her and she sent me suggestions and positions that could help me through the pains. Unfortunately, they didn't really help. It was getting difficult to breathe through them. I made my husband start to time them; I was having these pains every couple of minutes and they were lasting 45-60 sec. I freaked out again, I knew I was in labor, but the staff at the hospital kept telling me that the back pain was nothing to worry about. I texted LT Johnson and she advised me to tell the doctors because the timing and frequency were concerning. I did as she advised and was taken down to the labor and delivery area. In less than an hour from her text, I had delivered my beautiful baby girl! LT Johnson continued to stay in contact with me for the rest of my week-long hospital stay to check up on me and make sure I was getting the care I needed.
Needless to say, the birth of my baby is definitely a memorable event; it was crazy and chaotic, but from start to finish, during each phase of the process, LT Johnson was there for me. She was there for me when I was at the hospital and she continued to help me when my care was turned over to the local hospital. She went above and beyond any and all expectations that I might have had; she sacrificed her precious 'off' time to support me during a time of anxiety and stress. I will always be grateful for her.