Kathie M Ratliff
March 2025
Kathie M
Ratliff
,
RN
ECMO
Riley Children's Health
Indianapolis
,
IN
United States
That Sunday night, Kathie stopped on her way home and bought a special outfit for this patient, knowing that a normal newborn outfit would not fit.
Kathie provided exceptional end-of-life care for not only the patient, but the family during this heartbreaking moment in their life. She not only ensured that the newborn was cared for with dignity and comfort but also provided exceptional emotional support to the grieving family. Kathie's effort and presence brought peace to this family during one of their darkest moments.
Providing care to patients on ECMO is rewarding, but you are often faced with emotional end-of-life situations. This child was placed on ECMO at birth during an exit procedure due to a severe complication identified late in the pregnancy, just days before the infant was born. Kathie was part of the team that helped place this child on ECMO at birth, which created a strong relationship with the family from the first moments of their daughter's life.
Despite many heroic measures to overcome the challenges this child faced, the decision was made to compassionately withdraw care. This decision was carried out on Monday, after Kathie had worked 6 out of the last 7 days. Despite the busy week she already had, it was without doubt that Kathie would be there to support this family. That Sunday night, Kathie stopped on her way home and bought a special outfit for this patient, knowing that a normal newborn outfit would not fit. Unfortunately, this baby had severe edema, blisters, skin lesions, central lines, ECMO cannulas, and a ventilator, which make getting dressed in a onesie quite difficult.
When I arrived at the patient's room on Monday morning, I was skeptical about how we would get the patient dressed safely. Rest assured, Kathie had a plan. She accounted for protecting the skin that had broken down, and the fact that there might be drainage from the wounds. She carefully instructed us to use gauze and various other medical supplies to ensure the baby was comfortable in her last moments. Kathie was also able to modify a 5T onesie to fit her 1-week-old patient to accommodate all of these complex factors.
After thoughtful planning and careful execution, we were able to have the baby fully dressed before the parents and extended family members arrived at the bedside. Immediately, the parents showed immense gratitude, while facing this heartbreaking moment, as this was the first time they had seen their baby dressed in an outfit.
Over the next few hours before life support was withdrawn, our patient was able to be cuddled by multiple family members, and the parents were able to hold and love on their newborn for the first and last time. The outfit brought some normalcy to this tragedy and helped cover medical devices and skin breakdown. It made for many memorable photos that would have been difficult without Kathie's thoughtful, compassionate care
Providing care to patients on ECMO is rewarding, but you are often faced with emotional end-of-life situations. This child was placed on ECMO at birth during an exit procedure due to a severe complication identified late in the pregnancy, just days before the infant was born. Kathie was part of the team that helped place this child on ECMO at birth, which created a strong relationship with the family from the first moments of their daughter's life.
Despite many heroic measures to overcome the challenges this child faced, the decision was made to compassionately withdraw care. This decision was carried out on Monday, after Kathie had worked 6 out of the last 7 days. Despite the busy week she already had, it was without doubt that Kathie would be there to support this family. That Sunday night, Kathie stopped on her way home and bought a special outfit for this patient, knowing that a normal newborn outfit would not fit. Unfortunately, this baby had severe edema, blisters, skin lesions, central lines, ECMO cannulas, and a ventilator, which make getting dressed in a onesie quite difficult.
When I arrived at the patient's room on Monday morning, I was skeptical about how we would get the patient dressed safely. Rest assured, Kathie had a plan. She accounted for protecting the skin that had broken down, and the fact that there might be drainage from the wounds. She carefully instructed us to use gauze and various other medical supplies to ensure the baby was comfortable in her last moments. Kathie was also able to modify a 5T onesie to fit her 1-week-old patient to accommodate all of these complex factors.
After thoughtful planning and careful execution, we were able to have the baby fully dressed before the parents and extended family members arrived at the bedside. Immediately, the parents showed immense gratitude, while facing this heartbreaking moment, as this was the first time they had seen their baby dressed in an outfit.
Over the next few hours before life support was withdrawn, our patient was able to be cuddled by multiple family members, and the parents were able to hold and love on their newborn for the first and last time. The outfit brought some normalcy to this tragedy and helped cover medical devices and skin breakdown. It made for many memorable photos that would have been difficult without Kathie's thoughtful, compassionate care