Kalina went out of her way to help me. She held my hand when I asked for one to hold. She did everything I asked and was super sweet and super nice.
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When it is summertime in the PICU, we are tasked with taking care of at least one near drowning patient. Sometimes these patients are very fortunate and bounce right back and other times we have to help guide the family through a poor prognosis. Because of nurses like Kalina, these families are blessed to have an exceptional nurse taking care of their child no matter the outcome. Recently Kalina was caring for a little boy who was pulled from a swimming pool by his sister. The family was having a really difficult time accepting the news that we were progressing towards end of life care, especially since they had already lost a child a few years ago. Kalina worked really hard to connect with the family and gain their trust. She explained everything in a way that they could understand and stood by their side, sometimes just being a listening ear. When we were getting ready to do a brain death exam, Kalina went above and beyond by staying past the end of her shift so that she could support the family and help a new nurse who had never completed the exam before. The mother referred to Kalina as "An Angel". I truly believe we have "Angels" working in the PICU each day and we are very fortunate that Kalina is one of those "Angels" on our team!