After spending 12 hours in the ED, my mom was finally admitted to the hospital early in the morning. Kathy came in and had a wonderful smile and treated mom with so much respect I immediately knew she was a special nurse. That afternoon the social worker told me Mom was being put in Observation status which meant we would not qualify for the rehab she so desperately needed. All I could envision was Mom being in the bed the rest of her life and I knew she would be miserable with no quality of life, no going to church that she lives for each week, no going out to eat or sitting outside, etc. I thought I had prepared myself for eventually this happening but never dreamed we were at that point and it really threw me for a loop. Kathy gave me such strength when she kept saying "I'm so sorry" and "I wish I could do something." Because I could hear the genuine compassion in Kathy's voice, it kept me from feeling so alone and from completely falling apart.
Kathy is also a very skilled nurse and was awesome when mom pulled her IV out. Since she couldn't find a good vein she immediately got the ultrasound machine. It was so comforting knowing she had been trained as a VAL. She still had a hard time trying to get the needle into the vein but she was so kind to mom and made sure she was not too uncomfortable during the procedure.
Before Kathy went home she came in to check on me. She told me I needed to go home and get some rest since I had only had two hours sleep in 48 hours. She assured me I would not be abandoning mom and the night nurse would take really good care of her. That was exactly what I needed to make the right decision.
The last day of our stay Kathy was our nurse again. She saw me in the hall and noticed I was very shaky since I had not eaten that day and insisted on giving me her almond snacks which fixed me right up.
Kathy is an amazing nurse and I am so thankful we had her as Mom's nurse. She made a difference in both our lives and we will be forever grateful for her.