Shelby was our day shift nurse in the Mother-Baby Unit on Floor 14 of Texas Children's Pavilion for Women for two days. Coming out of an early delivery, via C-section, which included three hours of additional surgery to repair a ruptured uterus and torn bladder, needless to say, I was extremely overwhelmed and exhausted. Immediately upon meeting Shelby, I was put at ease. She calmly walked me through my care plan, always asking me if there was anything else she could do to make me more comfortable. I was required to wear a Foley catheter for two weeks post-op, which is not common in the Mother-Baby Unit. Shelby routinely checked it every two to three hours and made sure I remained clean and drained. She even showed my husband how to tend to the catheter, so I remained infection-free at home too. I appreciated her taking the time to do this because I was quite stressed about using the catheter once at home.

Shelby was extremely proactive and always made sure I'd placed my breakfast, lunch, and dinner order so I could get as much nourishment as possible. She also encouraged us to take advantage of the nursery in the evenings and added a “do not disturb” sign to our door so we could get some much-needed, uninterrupted sleep. Most importantly, Shelby was my biggest cheerleader. She encouraged me to get out of bed and start moving around as soon as I felt up to it. She was so motivational that I started taking multiple walks around the unit on day 2! While Shelby is newer in her nursing career, all of her coworkers can learn from her, regardless of tenure. She takes her job seriously, knows how to build relationships with her patients, and has fantastic bedside manner. We were so lucky to have her as a nurse and smile knowing that she will make future patients in the unit comfortable and optimistic during their post-birth recovery process.