April 2024
Riley
Cluff
,
RN, BSN
ICU
McKay-Dee Hospital Center - Intermountain Health
Ogden
,
UT
United States
As I watched Riley work tirelessly to fight for my child's life, I no longer felt alone.
My son was admitted to the ICU and intubated. He had viral pneumonia and had reached the point of respiratory failure. I had been watching his desperate struggle for 3 days in the hospital, and I was so scared and felt so alone. Riley was my son's nurse the first night. He stayed by my son's side for hours, working hard to stabilize his vitals. He patiently spent an hour and 45 minutes putting in an IV so he could give meds to stabilize my son's blood pressure. My son has terribly small veins. As I watched Riley work tirelessly to fight for my child's life, I no longer felt alone. I clung on to hope that he would be okay as I watched the dedication, capability, and compassion that Riley displayed in caring for my son. I will forever be grateful for the kindness and tireless effort Riley displayed as he worked so hard to help him. And as my son healed, Riley continued to connect with him and cheered him on, even when he wasn't assigned to him. I am so grateful to everyone in the ICU, but Riley made a remarkable difference in my life on the darkest night I have ever experienced.