Hi, my name is D and I'm being adopted by K. I'm two weeks old today. This is my first ever letter to write and it's to you because I want to tell you about a nurse who made my stay excellent.
First of all, NICU wasn't in my plans and really anyone's plans. Who would know a gasp of amniotic fluid would go so wrong? And the drug exposure - now that one is not on me.
I was met by a team of nurses who were all great, but Michael, he was the best. He knew exactly what to do and I was one sick baby. He is what you grown-ups call "highly skilled." He put IVs in my teeny, tiny veins and oh all those monitors he hooked me up to. Then he watched me "like a hawk." He was at my disposal.
I could hear K and her mom ask Michael the questions over and over and did he get tired of answering their questions? NO. I felt like I could answer the questions. Then he would teach them extra stuff.
Day 2 came and I recognized Michael's voice. I felt confident knowing he was there for me. He was so patient with me and I kept him hopping with my ever-changing oxygen saturations. I saw how he was both those words that mean you care - "empathetic" and "compassionate." I mean this guy cared about all of us. Day 2 ended with me needing to be intubated. Michael helped calm K and her mom. He explained the benefits that intubation provided for little people. Michael even stayed for a couple of hours extra to help.
Day 3 Michael is here again! I/we needed him. We trusted his judgment and knew he cared about us. The doctors want to send me to another hospital. And one doctor told my mom I may never make it home. Well, I proved him wrong. But Michael was the one whose clinical skills and emotional support will have a forever part of my story.