Kaci Camejo
July 2022
Kaci
Camejo
,
RN
Pediatrics
NCH Healthcare System
Naples
,
FL
United States
Kaci’s confidence and strong yet gently sweet presence in C’s hospital room allowed me to exhale for the first time in 24 hours.
My 2-year-old daughter C experienced her first asthma exacerbation stemming from pneumonia and RSV during her stay at the hospital. Our first full-shift nurse after being admitted at night was Kaci on the pediatric floor. Kaci’s confidence and strong yet gently sweet presence in C’s hospital room allowed me to exhale for the first time in 24 hours. The moment she first walked into the room and introduced herself I felt my body fold into itself and my heart beat finally slow down. I still can’t put into words how at ease I felt. Call it a mother’s intuition, but I finally felt like both my daughter and myself were in the hands that God wanted us and needed us to be in.
Kaci’s warm mothering spirit and nurturing sense along with her little to no-nonsense attitude fit just right with my spirited and feisty daughter's personality. C needed continuous oxygen but would constantly rip the cannula and tape off her face, refusing to let me put it back on her nose. This out and in of the cannulas happened several times an hour. Each time either Kaci would hear C fussing about it, or we would call her into the room for help. Each time Kaci would calmly and sweetly walk in, remind C to keep them in, and push it back down her forehead to her nose, and each time C kept them in!
On top of the cannula drama, C desperately needed steroids to open her lungs and airways, allowing her to breathe better. Steroids through an IV into a terrible twos toddler is the conjuring I didn’t know existed, nor wish to see again. That ‘roid rage is real! Exhaustion, being sick, being scared, and being in an unfamiliar place on top of steroids caused C to completely melt down numerous times. She would cry, yell, scream, holler, scratch, punch, hit, and kick – no one was safe. Kaci never once lost her composure, her coolness, or her ability to treat the patient. She was poised, gracious, forgiving, and professional during these episodes. She offered a sedative to C when she saw how upset I was getting at her loss of control. That alone allowed C to sleep and thus allowed the cannulas to stay put and her treatments and medicine to be given with little to no issue.
Moreover, Kaci displayed great ingenuity and creativity with how to retape the cannulas and when to retape them. She assessed the risk vs reward regarding the IV placement and ultimately opted to replace the IV, allowing C to use her dominant hand for thumb-sucking, eating, and above all else comfort. Kaci is the official C whisperer!
Without Kaci, our whole experience would have been different, longer, and likely worse. She is a human angel and without a doubt the best pediatric nurse you have. Her job is to medically and clinically treat my daughter but little does she know that she also emotionally and psychologically cured me too. Thank you Kaci for your comfort, your skill, and your compassion. We will never forget how lucky and blessed we are to have been treated by you!
Kaci’s warm mothering spirit and nurturing sense along with her little to no-nonsense attitude fit just right with my spirited and feisty daughter's personality. C needed continuous oxygen but would constantly rip the cannula and tape off her face, refusing to let me put it back on her nose. This out and in of the cannulas happened several times an hour. Each time either Kaci would hear C fussing about it, or we would call her into the room for help. Each time Kaci would calmly and sweetly walk in, remind C to keep them in, and push it back down her forehead to her nose, and each time C kept them in!
On top of the cannula drama, C desperately needed steroids to open her lungs and airways, allowing her to breathe better. Steroids through an IV into a terrible twos toddler is the conjuring I didn’t know existed, nor wish to see again. That ‘roid rage is real! Exhaustion, being sick, being scared, and being in an unfamiliar place on top of steroids caused C to completely melt down numerous times. She would cry, yell, scream, holler, scratch, punch, hit, and kick – no one was safe. Kaci never once lost her composure, her coolness, or her ability to treat the patient. She was poised, gracious, forgiving, and professional during these episodes. She offered a sedative to C when she saw how upset I was getting at her loss of control. That alone allowed C to sleep and thus allowed the cannulas to stay put and her treatments and medicine to be given with little to no issue.
Moreover, Kaci displayed great ingenuity and creativity with how to retape the cannulas and when to retape them. She assessed the risk vs reward regarding the IV placement and ultimately opted to replace the IV, allowing C to use her dominant hand for thumb-sucking, eating, and above all else comfort. Kaci is the official C whisperer!
Without Kaci, our whole experience would have been different, longer, and likely worse. She is a human angel and without a doubt the best pediatric nurse you have. Her job is to medically and clinically treat my daughter but little does she know that she also emotionally and psychologically cured me too. Thank you Kaci for your comfort, your skill, and your compassion. We will never forget how lucky and blessed we are to have been treated by you!