August 2021
Kacy
Wigginton
,
RN
CCU
Huntsville Hospital
Huntsville
,
AL
United States
On the occasion that those closest to her could not calm her down, Kacy often stepped in and took her hand to talk to her as a friend.
Hospitals are never fun places. No one ever wants to have to visit, much less be in need of it. That’s how it was for Michelle. Even though she was a nurse at the very hospital she was admitted to, she knew how overworked the nurses and doctors are and how many patients they can be responsible for at any given time. And in M’s case, she had a lot of special needs such as being on a vegan, gluten-free diet while battling metastatic cancer that had infiltrated her heart. Such a scary, poor prognosis would give anyone anxiety. M was no exception. Enter Kacy. M’s knowledge of nursing and protocols never ceased and watching the nurses take care of her could’ve been an extra stressor, but Kacy’s exceptional nursing abilities were very calming to M. Kacy was simultaneously training a new nursing graduate and M would often chime in with teaching lessons of her own to this very willing to learn student with Kacy nodding along in agreement. When Kacy came on for her shifts, M often commented on how much better she felt having that extra bit of comfort simply knowing she was there. On the occasion that those closest to her could not calm her down, Kacy often stepped in and took her hand to talk to her as a friend. She would explain what was needed in a way that helped soothe when it could’ve easily caused a panic attack if handled in a different way. In short, Kacy became family to all of us that spent significant amounts of time sitting with M in her last weeks. At the funeral for our beloved M, there stood a pretty, blonde Kacy by herself making her way to pay respects. We hugged her and cried like she had been part of the family for years and Kacy simply said “M said I was family now so I wanted to come.” She managed to bring a little bit of comfort to those of us in mourning after such a difficult and tragic past few weeks. She is amazing as a nurse and a person and we are so grateful she was there for M in her most difficult part of life.