December 2015
Rebecca
Wilson
,
BSN, RN
Mother Baby
Kettering Medical Center
Kettering
,
OH
United States
I'm not normally good with names, but I will never forget the name Rebecca Wilson—because that's the name of the nurse who saved my son's life.
My son was born at KMC on a Friday afternoon. My pregnancy had been fairly stress-free, at least as stress-free as growing a tiny human can be. So it was a surprise that the labor did not go smoothly. My contractions were touch-and-go at best, and at the last minute, he had to be vacuumed extracted due to complications. Luckily I was surrounded by a team of wonderful doctors and nurses, and in a few short hours, the complications seemed to dissolve. He was determined to be healthy, and we were sent over to the Mother-Baby unit by early evening.
At first, our experience there was routine. Rebecca came in and introduced herself. She gave him a bath and tended to the normal postpartum care for both of us. Before long, my husband and I began to fall asleep with our new baby boy at our side.
At 2 AM, everything changed.
I heard a small cough come from the bassinet and looked over to see a tiny bit of what I thought was spit up in the corner of his mouth. I picked him up, and I knew something was wrong. I held him in "burping" position and patted his back—but then he stopped breathing. He started to turn blue, and I panicked. I had taken the CPR training, but I instantly forgot everything I knew. My baby was hours old, and he was limp in my arms.
My husband called the nurse, and Rebecca came in immediately. I wish I could recall in detail exactly what she did, but it was honestly a blur to me. She was resuscitating him, contacting the NICU team, and calming my husband and me all at once—she was a superhero.
My son spent the next few days in the NICU for observation and testing, and Rebecca spent the days comforting and caring for me. She made sure that while my son was my priority, I was taking care of myself and healing properly. She also helped explain information I was given during my visits to the NICU. In the end, no one really knows what caused this episode—but everyone agreed on one thing: Rebecca saved his life.
I know that the DAISY Award is meant for nurses who go above and beyond their duty, and some may argue that what Rebecca did was simply part (a hard part) of her job. But I believe differently.
The way Rebecca cared for my family during that time means the world to me—literally. From the moment I found out I was pregnant, my baby was my world. And the instant I thought we lost him that night was unbearable. But Rebecca didn't let that happen.
My son turned one last month. He is a happy, healthy boy, and my husband and I are happy, healthy parents. And Rebecca gave us that. It's a gift I will never take for granted, and I am thankful to her every day.
My son was born at KMC on a Friday afternoon. My pregnancy had been fairly stress-free, at least as stress-free as growing a tiny human can be. So it was a surprise that the labor did not go smoothly. My contractions were touch-and-go at best, and at the last minute, he had to be vacuumed extracted due to complications. Luckily I was surrounded by a team of wonderful doctors and nurses, and in a few short hours, the complications seemed to dissolve. He was determined to be healthy, and we were sent over to the Mother-Baby unit by early evening.
At first, our experience there was routine. Rebecca came in and introduced herself. She gave him a bath and tended to the normal postpartum care for both of us. Before long, my husband and I began to fall asleep with our new baby boy at our side.
At 2 AM, everything changed.
I heard a small cough come from the bassinet and looked over to see a tiny bit of what I thought was spit up in the corner of his mouth. I picked him up, and I knew something was wrong. I held him in "burping" position and patted his back—but then he stopped breathing. He started to turn blue, and I panicked. I had taken the CPR training, but I instantly forgot everything I knew. My baby was hours old, and he was limp in my arms.
My husband called the nurse, and Rebecca came in immediately. I wish I could recall in detail exactly what she did, but it was honestly a blur to me. She was resuscitating him, contacting the NICU team, and calming my husband and me all at once—she was a superhero.
My son spent the next few days in the NICU for observation and testing, and Rebecca spent the days comforting and caring for me. She made sure that while my son was my priority, I was taking care of myself and healing properly. She also helped explain information I was given during my visits to the NICU. In the end, no one really knows what caused this episode—but everyone agreed on one thing: Rebecca saved his life.
I know that the DAISY Award is meant for nurses who go above and beyond their duty, and some may argue that what Rebecca did was simply part (a hard part) of her job. But I believe differently.
The way Rebecca cared for my family during that time means the world to me—literally. From the moment I found out I was pregnant, my baby was my world. And the instant I thought we lost him that night was unbearable. But Rebecca didn't let that happen.
My son turned one last month. He is a happy, healthy boy, and my husband and I are happy, healthy parents. And Rebecca gave us that. It's a gift I will never take for granted, and I am thankful to her every day.