As a fellow Norton employee and nurse, I spent my entire pregnancy anxious about being “the patient.”  My career has been spent on the other side- comforting patients and families through crisis and I was extremely scared and anxious of my own birth experience. How would it feel like to be a patient during this joyful but intense time of delivering my first baby? 

When I got to my labor and delivery room, instantly I was greeted by Kayla’s smile and “Hey girl, you’re having a baby!” Kayla had true joy in her voice for what she was doing. She treated me with care and a gentleness. She could tell I needed this as a first-time mom who was so scared. She got us set up with everything we needed and immediately discussed pain control with me and cheered me on when I advocated to go ahead and start pain control. Kayla could easily see that I was nervous and scared, and she metaphorically and literally held my hand through the admission and start of medications. As a first-time mom and hospital patient, I could not have asked for a better nurse than Kayla!  

Kayla’s kindness in just four hours of being our nurse truly left a remarkable impact on me and my family.  I will remember her as part of the journey to becoming a mom for years to come.  

Kayla- thank you for your kindness and love that night!  You showed me what it means to be a nurse and healer- I aspire to continue caring for my patients at Norton Healthcare the way you cared for me.  I am forever grateful for you.