Kelly has the special gift to hone in on things that matter most. Our patient who came to JFK for respiratory failure had been in need of using a bipap machine for a prolonged time. Mrs. G on admission had a head full of silvery long hair. During her hospital stay and the prolonged bipap use, her hair had turned into a matted mess due to the need for the bipap. Prior to Sunday many of the nurses had already contemplated cutting Mrs. G's hair since she had begged to have it done. The nurses weren't sure what to do.
When Kelly took over Mrs. G's care she assessed her patient and immediately knew that something needed to be done about this hair situation. As a woman with a head full of long hair, Kelly knew that this was a sensitive issue. As she already had been, Mrs. G again begged to have her hair cut off. Kelly sat with Mrs. G and had a talk about the situation. She wanted to follow the patient's wishes because she saw the need to relieve the patient of her predicament. The hair had turned into a thick ball of a mess. Kelly called me that morning to get my feedback. My input was to get the husband on board because we wanted his input. Mr. and Mrs. G and Kelly had a conversation and concluded that Kelly was going to do the job, despite her not having any hairdressing experience.
Mrs. G was raving to me on Monday about what a courageous angel Kelly was to help her get rid of the hot mess on her head. She was extremely thankful for the compassionate care and courage that Kelly provided to her. She felt so relieved and happy also having her "hairball" as she called it cut off. She said Kelly was very special and she will never forget what she did for her.