Rachel Blache, BSN, CNM

Rachel exemplifies all the qualities you envision when you think of a nurse caring for someone you love. I have delivered all four of my babies at Sinai, and this last delivery with her really stands out.

From the start of her shift, she went above and beyond to care for me. The very first thing she did was explain all the options I had, including a peanut ball, which had never been offered in my previous deliveries. She helped me into positions to help progress labor, provided therapeutic stretches and massage to help my muscles, provided explanations for everything she was doing and why, and followed through on every timeline expectation she set.

When she was about to leave the room each time, she would let me know when she would be back and for what. You better believe if she said she would be back in at least 30 minutes to escalate Pitocin and reposition me; she was back in 30 minutes or sooner to do it.

More importantly, she was an advocate for me. Although I didn't have strong preferences for a birth plan, my one preference was to have an epidural. This epidural did not go smoothly, but I really wanted it. She advocated for backup assistance when she could tell it wasn't working. She spoke up and asked everyone to take a pause when she could tell it was too much for me, even though I didn't say it.

Throughout the shift, she paid such close attention to my reactions to things, and she could tell when something was different. In those moments, she really communicated and provided me with all the options. Despite deliveries being mostly routine, she provided such personalized care, and it didn't feel like she was just going through the motions of it.

We feel so lucky that induction and delivery all occurred in the same shift with her because I felt so safe and cared for by her. I would want my loved ones to feel that their nurse knows something about them, that they are advocating for their best interest, and that they feel safe. I would want them to feel like they were truly cared for and not just another delivery or another broken leg, asthma exacerbation, or whatever it is. She made me feel that way, and I could feel that she truly loves doing what she does.

For our last baby, this was everything to us. She deserves to be recognized because it matters, and I'd love her to know that her passion and strong sense of caring meant so much to us! She's fantastic!

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She was my nurse on my third day of induction and genuinely got the hardest shift. I was tired and hadn’t progressed past 5cm. She came in and was determined to get me to 10cm so I could avoid having a failed induction/c-section.

She came in every 15-30 minutes and was checking on me or rotating me positions to help me progress. Within 4 hours, she got me to 10cm with the baby’s head engaged. She was extremely helpful while pushing and guiding me through!

There were some big scares, and she was extremely calm and navigated them like a pro. I am extremely grateful she was my nurse that day because I don’t think I would’ve had the ability to have a vaginal delivery without her being there.