I am writing this letter to tell of the powerful compassionate care a nurse provided for a young 23-year-old female with terminal cancer during her last days of life.
A bright lovely female was admitted to our unit during what would turn out to be the last days of her life. Since this was a fairly new diagnosis, both the family and the patient were not ready to hear this chapter was going to end soon. Doctors told them her death was imminent and it would be challenging.
Joanna Segovia is an amazing, hard-working, compassionate nurse who often works overtime because she simply wants to take care of patients and provide affectionate care for them. She is known as the mother of the unit, the one who knows all and does all. Joanna came to care for this young girl and immediately bonded with her family. They could see and feel her warmth and trusted her knowledge as soon as she stepped into the room. Unavoidably, Joanna had to discuss the plan of care for which they were not ready to talk about. With immense grace, Joanna guided them through the idea of stopping treatment and turning towards comfort care. This was difficult to accept for such a strong family, but Joanna revealed to them that death, dignity, and relief could be achieved through transitioning to comfort care.
On the day of her death, Joanna came into work extra because she knew she needed to be there for the family. Upon the difficult hours, she facilitated the removal of oxygen therapy allowing her to pass and was the type of angelic nurse any family would want at their bedside. Joanna's understanding of what it means to care beyond the clinical aspects of healthcare, her emotional depth, and availability, her sincerity, and passion to her patients and their families is nothing less than inspirational.