My mom was in ICU for acute pancreatitis, an extremely painful thing and she was expected to recover. She had a feeding tube placed and her mouth was very dry and she was not allowed to drink. We gave her many ice chips and did mouth care when we were there. Soon her condition began to deteriorate. Tracy became her nurse for the last several nights and her care was just incredible. She made sure my mom never ran out of ice, and kept it in reach, even though she was very busy with her other patient. Tracy gave her a great bath plus washed her hair. It made my mom feel so good.
Eventually my mom was dying and not expected to recover. Even then, Tracy gave her a last bath and rubbed lotion on her back and did little things like that for my mom. Even though she was dying, my mom wanted her hair to look nice. Tracy took the time to wash her hair. Tracy always liked to clean up the room also, she was just the most incredible nurse.
Sometimes in ICU when the big things like IV drips, feeding tubes, managing pain, vitals, etc, are going on, it is easy to overlook the tiny basic things that really contribute to the way the patient is feeling. Tracy is an incredibly compassionate, caring, skilled nurse and Borgess is very lucky to have her.