Shelly Tabor
November 2023
Shelly
Tabor
,
RN
ED
Kaiser Permanente Santa Rosa Medical Center
Santa Rosa
,
CA
United States

 

 

 

This was extra work Nurse Shelley took on, and arranging for that self-care lifted my daughter's spirits and, by default, mine as well.
We took our teenage daughter to the emergency department on Saturday due to a psychiatric emergency and she was placed on a 5150 hold. She has had mental health struggles for several years, and although this wasn't her first time going to the ED, it was heartbreaking to see her in this state since it had been two years since her last psychiatric hospitalization, and she has worked so hard. Nurse Shelly came on as her nurse 48 hours into the hold, when my daughter was starting to despair over the various snags to her hospital placement. When Nurse Shelly walked in to introduce herself, she immediately assessed the situation and knew what needed to be done -- she arranged for my daughter to take a shower and brush her teeth for the first time in days. This was extra work Nurse Shelley took on, and arranging for that self-care lifted my daughter's spirits and, by default, mine as well. For the rest of her shift, Nurse Shelley's firm but kind and caring demeanor helped my daughter hang in there while we waited and waited. She also worked on some of the medical details that were holding up my daughter's hospital placement. We could tell she was rooting for my daughter and knew that for her mental health, she needed to transfer as soon as possible. We are really grateful for Nurse Shelley's kindness, care, and compassion during an extremely difficult time.