Tonja Bryant
March 2018
Tonja
Bryant
,
BSN, RN
CVICU
Arkansas Children's Hospital
Little Rock
,
AR
United States

 

 

 

Tonja took over care of a patient who was experiencing his last few hours on this Earth. The family had already been through a grueling 24 hours and were close to their breaking point. Continuing the advocacy, empathy, and compassion that had been extended throughout this young child's stay at ACH, Tonja embraced the opportunity to help a family through this difficult transition. As she kept back her own tears, Tonja strived to give this family every cuddling and loving opportunity they deserved. She found a lamp which allowed the family to hold their child in peace and worked with them to identify their last wishes and needs as a family. When it was over, Tonja assisted the family with family photos. These were not your typical family photos and as the dad would later post on social media, the opportunity to photograph their last memories as a family meant the world to them and offered him the peace he needed. Tonja found a quiet location with a beautiful background and allowed them to take your "typical" newborn family photos. She assisted in arranging the room with their items which also allowed for beautiful memories that will last a lifetime. Nursing is more than pushing medicines and dealing with the minute to minute tasks, it is also taking a minute to recognize what we would all want as families and Tonja did just that for this family.