We would like to recognize our son's nurse for her outstanding compassion and nursing care during his stay at Halifax Hospital Surgical ICU in Daytona Beach, Florida. Our son was in a critical dirt bike accident that resulted in a bilateral head injury with major brain stem damage. He required two intensive surgeries within a twelve hour timespan of his initial admittance to the hospital. Both Nellie Farrance RN charge nurse and Kayla Murphey RN were very thorough in explaining his condition to us and making sure we understood the severity of his condition and what treatments and options we had during his stay in the hospital.
As days passed and we could see he was declining and not getting any better we had to face a very hard decision on what we wanted to do for his best interest. Kayla explained in detail the difference in organ donation and how to provide the best end-of-life care in our son's situation. Although it was the hardest decision we've ever had to make as parents, Kayla made us comfortable in knowing that we chose the best option for our son to help another family during this tragic event and pass as peacefully as possible with the least amount of trauma and agony.
Kayla and Nellie were both there day in and day out during our son's 10 day stay talking with us, crying with us, and offering comfort and kindness. They would talk to our son and explain procedures as they were working with him, even though he was medically sedated and paralyzed they treated him with dignity and respect. Sometimes these wonderful ladies would come in on their days off to work with our son and ensure he was given the ultimate care. In fact, Kayla assured us that she would come in on her day off to be with us and our son at the moment we decided to remove him from the life support and allow him to pass on his own. She stood true to those words and spent a few hours of her own time to be there for us physically and mentally that evening.
We wouldn't have asked for more compassionate nurses who truly believe in their career choices and make the families feel at ease with information and knowledge. No matter how many times we would ask them to explain the same things to us over and over so that we made sure we were retaining the information, they did so with patience and sincerity. This was the most stressful thing and they made it as smooth a transition as possible for everyone involved. These nurses have such kind hearts, giving so much of themselves in any situation and always being on their feet, running, and staying focused to ensure the best care possible for your loved one. We could never thank them enough for everything they've done for our son during his stay.