I need to take a moment to share with you the incredible experience that my family has had at Martha Jefferson. Since 2013, Lietzle Ford has become family to us. After a long induction, we were lucky enough to meet Lietzle on day 2, tired and unsure, optimistic and excited. Lietzle was training another nurse-- double bonus. She was patient and kind and while the time that she was with us became a blur with the whirlwind birth of my first child, she remains a focal point and highlight of that day for us.
We kept in touch and in 2015 when I became pregnant with my 2nd baby, she once again became an adviser, a mentor, and sounding board. When my contractions began that Sunday morning, I reached out to her and was immediately calmed to know that she was working. My labor progressed quickly and she met us at the door of the unit with a hug. Room 10 was available and she thought to ask if I wanted to labor there...Room 10 is the room that my first baby was born in. Details. She thinks of everything. Through my quick and intense labor, I don't think she ever left my side. Every single time I opened my eyes between the most difficult contractions, there she was. She was the voice in my ear, she literally and figuratively held me up, the calm and the steady. I know that this is a job that she does with devotion every day but it's her work and devotion that makes Martha Jefferson such a special place to us. When I think back on our experience, I immediately think warmth. We felt so taken care of and so safe in her care.
Ten weeks later, my son was admitted to MJH with RSV. We stayed for 4 days. While we were in the ER (in the middle of the January blizzard) an ER nurse came into our room and said that Lietzle was on the phone. She had called to make sure that we were ok. She also thought to call up to the LD unit to be sure someone brought me a breast pump and supplies. As a stressed, scared, nursing mom -- I had hardly even thought of that. The next day, she drove in all that snow to the hospital (on her day off) to bring me my favorite hot tea and a meal. The following day, she was working, checked in on us and brought my son a gift (his favorite stuffed animal, that we named Ford). She made sure we were taken care of in the most thoughtful ways. She made the hospital feel more like home to us.
Lietzle is not just doing her job every day. She's making difficult days brighter. She's brilliant and warm. She's an exemplary example of everything a nurse should embody and I absolutely cannot imagine having another baby without her.