Erin O'Donnell
May 2021
Erin
O'Donnell
,
BSN, RN, ONC
Orthopedics
Northwestern Memorial Hospital
Chicago
,
IL
United States
And due to the compassion and understanding shown by Zoe and Erin, this loving woman did not die alone.
Zoe and Erin, you are the names and faces of this DAISY story, but the entire 14 West team is behind you and a part of it! It began in January 2020 when the first 2 rule-out COVID patients were admitted to 14 West, and early March 2020 when we were the first surgical unit to stand up to care for COVID 19 patients! But I want to share this very special story with all of you. It highlights the reason these exceptional nurses wanted to be in healthcare.
A married couple was admitted to NMH via the Emergency Department. He was a 99-year-old man that was appropriate for floor COVID care and she was a 97-year-old woman who required ICU level of care. This was the 2nd marriage for both. They married 10 years ago after both their spouses passed away. During this stay, her family made the difficult decision to only provide comfort care and transfer her out of the MICU. The Manager of the MICU called me and after some discussion and a call to the Director of Infection Prevention, a plan was quickly put in place to transfer Mrs. to 14 West so they may be near one another.
Knowing the end was near, Nurses Zoe Gardziola and Erin O’Donnell along with PCT took their time in shaving, trimming the beard, and giving a haircut to this wonderful man who had hours to days left with his wife. You see, Mr. had been unable to get a haircut or shave since the start of the pandemic. That meant 10 months of hair growth! They spruced him up and safely brought him to his wife. An environment free of potential harm was established and he was positioned in the recliner. This wonderful team also assured that Mrs. had her hair combed and skin soft to the touch as he caressed her hand and reminisced about their life together. It’s funny how things can play out at times because this very forgetful not always fully oriented gentleman was more in the moment than he had been and was talking about his understanding of the situation and treasuring the time he had with his wife. As he expressed his sadness that his wife was unable to return the squeezes he was giving her, our nurses choked back emotion as they explain to him that “she can hear you and feel you, you can keep talking and touching”.
As you might imagine, this loving couple who found each other later in life had to say goodbye to one another in a quiet hospital room on 14 West. And due to the compassion and understanding shown by Zoe and Erin, this loving woman did not die alone. She passed away peacefully with her handsome knight beside her softly caressing and holding her hand. In this time of uncertainty, distrust of others, and challenges, this is a story of love and compassion that I wanted to share with you all!
There is a quote from Richard Puz that says, “Death Leaves a heartache no one can heal, love leaves a memory no one can steal.” This story will leave memories of a lifetime for the families, our “in-love” 99-year-old man, and our entire team. Leah, thank you for picking up the phone and calling me…you took the time. Together they showed us what true compassion is and allowed us all to witness true love from this amazing couple!
A married couple was admitted to NMH via the Emergency Department. He was a 99-year-old man that was appropriate for floor COVID care and she was a 97-year-old woman who required ICU level of care. This was the 2nd marriage for both. They married 10 years ago after both their spouses passed away. During this stay, her family made the difficult decision to only provide comfort care and transfer her out of the MICU. The Manager of the MICU called me and after some discussion and a call to the Director of Infection Prevention, a plan was quickly put in place to transfer Mrs. to 14 West so they may be near one another.
Knowing the end was near, Nurses Zoe Gardziola and Erin O’Donnell along with PCT took their time in shaving, trimming the beard, and giving a haircut to this wonderful man who had hours to days left with his wife. You see, Mr. had been unable to get a haircut or shave since the start of the pandemic. That meant 10 months of hair growth! They spruced him up and safely brought him to his wife. An environment free of potential harm was established and he was positioned in the recliner. This wonderful team also assured that Mrs. had her hair combed and skin soft to the touch as he caressed her hand and reminisced about their life together. It’s funny how things can play out at times because this very forgetful not always fully oriented gentleman was more in the moment than he had been and was talking about his understanding of the situation and treasuring the time he had with his wife. As he expressed his sadness that his wife was unable to return the squeezes he was giving her, our nurses choked back emotion as they explain to him that “she can hear you and feel you, you can keep talking and touching”.
As you might imagine, this loving couple who found each other later in life had to say goodbye to one another in a quiet hospital room on 14 West. And due to the compassion and understanding shown by Zoe and Erin, this loving woman did not die alone. She passed away peacefully with her handsome knight beside her softly caressing and holding her hand. In this time of uncertainty, distrust of others, and challenges, this is a story of love and compassion that I wanted to share with you all!
There is a quote from Richard Puz that says, “Death Leaves a heartache no one can heal, love leaves a memory no one can steal.” This story will leave memories of a lifetime for the families, our “in-love” 99-year-old man, and our entire team. Leah, thank you for picking up the phone and calling me…you took the time. Together they showed us what true compassion is and allowed us all to witness true love from this amazing couple!