Perioperative teams are often an unrecognized event in patient care because they are mostly unseen, or quickly forgotten due to the awesome powers of anesthesia. On the flip side, it's not often that an operating room nurse endures the vulnerable position of becoming a surgical patient. However, it was a rare occasion, such as this, that I did.
Recently, I found myself suffering from an acute amount of localized pain in my abdomen while at work in the operating room. After taking the advice of my surgical team, I reached out to my doctors and inquired what to do. They were amazingly quick to respond and after some tests between cases, it was decided that we should surgically address the issue. This news sent me into an instant state of panic. As I followed my surgeon to the operating room front desk to schedule the procedure, I encountered several of my OR family. I asked a few of them if they could stay and assist with my procedure and they kindly agreed. I am truly fortunate and blessed to have such smart and loving coworkers in the operating room environment. I wouldn't want anyone else taking care of me in the most vulnerable of circumstances.
Heidi went above and beyond the role of a nurse to take care of me. Once Heidi learned of my situation and saw the fear in my face, she rearranged her family obligations to temporarily take care of me and mine. My family was not able to accompany me at the hospital because they, too, were ill and not able to travel. Heidi then accompanied me to pre-op where she helped me remain calm by making me laugh while literally changing from an OR role to a patient role. She then assisted with my procedure and followed me to recovery on the fifth floor. She was so kind to stay with me until I was well enough to drink some fluids and update my family. I'm blessed to have excellent co-workers that are also invaluable friends!