I wanted to bring attention to a nurse on STC 1 who simply amazed me today. Rustin Jaramillo had a difficult patient in our unit that was not in a good mood and was being difficult with the sitter and Rustin all morning. Rustin remained calm and never once showed that he was upset with what was happening. This patient needed to get an IV and was being a bit difficult with the process. Rustin continued to speak with the patient with patience and care in his voice. All of the sudden we hear music and people singing from this room. We thought it was the family of the patient until the charge nurse who was helping Rustin with the IV came out to get some more supplies, and stated that Rustin was singing with his patient. We were blown away. I went closer to the room to hear and to witness this beautiful act of compassion from Rustin. He found out the patient liked old hymns, so he found a station on the computer which played these hymns in hopes that it would calm the patient. The patient started singing to the music and asked Rustin to sing along with her.
Let me tell you that when we first heard the music we thought, “Aww, how sweet,” but when we realized it was our nurse that was actually singing, we were amazed. Watching him hold the patient’s hand and singing songs with her was breathtaking. A calming aura came over the room and the patient. Rustin was not singing under his breath; you could actually hear him singing with the patient, and he knew all the words to the songs that were played. While he was doing this, the charge nurse was able to try to get an IV on this patient without the patient being difficult.
I have known Rustin for a while and have seen him being compassionate before but what he did today was way more than a regular compassionate nurse. He listened to his patient and found a way to calm the patient. When the patient asked for him to sing along, there was no missed beat, he immediately started singing with the patient. It was simply beautiful to see this happening in the room. If we were allowed to video, it was definitely a moment that should have been seen and shared with other nurses to truly show the art of nursing. Even with all the stuff going on with his patient today, Rustin never once changed his demeanor and what he did worked for the patient. Rustin later told us of the story of when he was growing up playing outside and his grandmother would sit on the porch and sing these hymns while he played. I definitely will always remember this event because of Rustin’s compassion and because it is a reminder of why we do our jobs. What I witnessed this morning has revitalized my compassion in nursing and caring for patients.