Kimberly G Smith, BSN, RN

I had very long and hard labor as my baby’s head was stuck sideways. I pushed for hours. Total labor of 32 hours! It was a really busy night at the hospital and there was only one midwife for the entire floor. Kim was the very first nurse to check me into triage. She stayed with me the entire night and left after her shift that morning. We assumed the baby would be born by the time she came back for her next shift. But we were wrong.

Kim was back at 7 pm and was also surprised to see us! We kept pushing all through the night again for the second time this time things were more serious as we weren’t making progress. The on-call midwife was so busy and growing tired and it showed! It did not once show in Kim! She stayed by my side always! Even when I was resting in between pushes she stayed in my room to chart to make sure I was okay. She kept encouraging me and reminded me I could do it even when I was giving up on myself! She massaged me, coached me into different positions, and made sure I stayed out of pain as much as possible! She also respected my birth plan and followed it accordingly.

My mom was in the room with us and was equally impressed with Kim! She was basically the midwife! She didn’t even get to eat dinner and stayed late over her shift because she did not want to leave me after such a long night together. She stayed with me until the end and never showed worry or concern so as to not stress me out! Even when she was telling me about our next steps of the vacuum assist and c-section if that did not work. I absolutely cannot imagine my birth without the support and care of Kim! She is recognized for her dedication to her patients and how she went above and beyond for me in my most vulnerable state. It was traumatic labor, and the most positive part of my story is having Kim by my side!