My mother was suddenly admitted to Kennedy Health Neuro ICU Washington Twp. with a newly diagnosed cancerous brain tumor. Needless to say, we were very anxious and frightened. A few hours after mom's admission to the Neuro ICU, the neuro surgeon arrived. He said he reviewed mom's head CT and verified that there was a large tumor in the right frontal lobe of her head and that it had to be removed. We thought our world had crashed the day before learning about the tumor but now it had to come out. There was no way to treat it otherwise. Brain Surgery? How? When? The surgeon said it had to come out Monday. He reassured us that he felt it was in just one area of the brain and that he could remove the entire tumor.
I stayed with mom most of the day; we talked about the impending surgery, about symptoms she had been having but hid from me. I finally left after dinner so I could strengthen up for the next few days and so mom could rest as we had a very traumatic day. We reassured each other that all would be fine and kissed good night. I was so concerned that she would lie awake all night worried about surgery, about her life, about me.
I arrived very early the next morning. As I'd hoped for—mom was awake; she'd slept so well she said, while fixing the coffee I brought her. She told me that her night nurse, Rick was so great. He sat with her during the night and told her everything about the surgery, what to expect before and after, about her dressing, about pain management, about her incision and reassured her that she would be well taken care of during and after her surgery. He told her the surgeon was an expert and that surgery would go well. She said, "Rick answered all of my questions and I feel so much better about my surgery on Monday." She said, "I can do this." I was overwhelmed by her level of comfort—considering how I had left her the night before.
Rick was on again that night; his shift started at 7pm. I left during the day but returned to see him. I just had to express the gratitude I felt that he took the time to sit with mom. I told him that he did what was we as nurses are supposed to do—educate, engage and empower our patients. I realize he was doing his job, but the way that he did his job and the effort and compassion he placed into doing his job is what made the difference in how mom perceived her impending surgery. It was his level of knowledge and experience that provided him insight into what this specific patient needed to feel empowered to conquer brain surgery.
When I approached Rick, he was writing assignments on the white board posted in the Neuro ICU, unaware of what impact he had made on mom's life and on mine. I interrupted him to thank him. He appeared surprised when I expressed my gratitude. He thanked me for taking the time to recognize his work but humbly responded, "I was just doing my job." I think it was much more than that.