Tammy Fenn
October 2017
Tammy
Fenn
,
RN
Critical Care
Borgess Health
Kalamazoo
,
MI
United States
That day, Tammy was our guardian angel. She displayed all of the qualities of compassion, patience, wisdom, kindness, perseverance, warmth, and resolve.
A nurse is a unique soul who will pass through your life for a short time and impact it for an eternity. If I could have chosen someone to care for my mom in her final hours it would have been Tammy. She took care of my mom with grace and compassion. In August, my dad and I followed an ambulance that took my mom to Borgess. Our best-case scenario was a minor heart attack. She was stable upon arrival and then suddenly her BP began to drop. Suddenly doctors and nurses had to change their course of action and swiftly diagnose.
My mom was rushed off to the heart cath lab where her BP continued to drop, unable to continue the doctor sent her to CSU to administer BP meds with the hope of stabilizing her overnight. Several hours later we were living our worst nightmare. My mom ruptured her mitral valve and papillary muscle and due to her dropping BP, this left us with little to no hope. The BP meds were barely keeping her stabilized and her diagnosis was grim at best. Overnight they had to intervene with a third BP med. Surgeons were telling us that her chance of surviving any surgery was 0%.
We arrived at my mom's bedside in the CSU and we were greeted by her nurse, Tammy, who encouraged us to talk to my mom and to tell her stories of happier times. My dad, my husband and both of our daughters very tearfully shared stories and through each story and tear, Tammy sat with us, wiped our tears and listened to our stories. Tammy told us about her mom who she lost which somehow seemed to lessen our pain and remind us that we were not alone in our battle.
Tammy spoke to my mom with love and gentleness. Her hope was to wake my mom so that we could tell her we loved her and that we would be okay, even though we all knew we would not be okay.
After a conference with my mom's doctor, we knew it was time to let her go. Tammy was with us every step of the way, wiping our tears and holding us when we needed to be hugged. In that moment, Tammy felt like family to us as if she had always been a part of our lives.
As my oldest daughter was struggling, Tammy joined her in the waiting room where she continued to wipe her tears, comfort her and talked to her at length. That day, Tammy was our guardian angel. She displayed all of the qualities of compassion, patience, wisdom, kindness, perseverance, warmth, and resolve. Love and kindness always make a difference. They bless the one who receives them and they bless the giver. We will remember Tammy with gratitude and with love in our hearts.
My mom was rushed off to the heart cath lab where her BP continued to drop, unable to continue the doctor sent her to CSU to administer BP meds with the hope of stabilizing her overnight. Several hours later we were living our worst nightmare. My mom ruptured her mitral valve and papillary muscle and due to her dropping BP, this left us with little to no hope. The BP meds were barely keeping her stabilized and her diagnosis was grim at best. Overnight they had to intervene with a third BP med. Surgeons were telling us that her chance of surviving any surgery was 0%.
We arrived at my mom's bedside in the CSU and we were greeted by her nurse, Tammy, who encouraged us to talk to my mom and to tell her stories of happier times. My dad, my husband and both of our daughters very tearfully shared stories and through each story and tear, Tammy sat with us, wiped our tears and listened to our stories. Tammy told us about her mom who she lost which somehow seemed to lessen our pain and remind us that we were not alone in our battle.
Tammy spoke to my mom with love and gentleness. Her hope was to wake my mom so that we could tell her we loved her and that we would be okay, even though we all knew we would not be okay.
After a conference with my mom's doctor, we knew it was time to let her go. Tammy was with us every step of the way, wiping our tears and holding us when we needed to be hugged. In that moment, Tammy felt like family to us as if she had always been a part of our lives.
As my oldest daughter was struggling, Tammy joined her in the waiting room where she continued to wipe her tears, comfort her and talked to her at length. That day, Tammy was our guardian angel. She displayed all of the qualities of compassion, patience, wisdom, kindness, perseverance, warmth, and resolve. Love and kindness always make a difference. They bless the one who receives them and they bless the giver. We will remember Tammy with gratitude and with love in our hearts.