Death is unfortunately not an uncommon occurrence when you work in an intensive care unit in a large city hospital. I am, however, fortunate to work with caring nurses like Joselyn who are able to orchestrate a peaceful passing with even the toughest of situations. She walked onto her shift to a critically ill patient who was quickly decompensating. This particular patient's next of kin/decision-maker was incarcerated and contact was poor, but the decision was made to advance to comfort measures only. Joselyn always puts the patient and their families first. Through multiple supervised phone calls with the prison, she was able to establish the wishes of this patient's loved one. She immediately started working against the clock calling pastoral care and setting up a constant phone line that the loved one and prison could reach. She listened to the worries and concerns of the next of kin and understood that they were deeply upset by the thought of their loved one dying alone. She recruited the entire floor for terminal extubation and weaning of drips. Nurses, Doctors, and Respiratory Therapists were at the bedside holding the patient's hand. She talked to the next of kin over the phone with everything she did until the very end, even taking moments in between tasks to ask how they were and if they were receiving adequate treatment while incarcerated.
Because of her, the patient did not die alone and the family member was able to be a part of this moment despite the physical distance between them. Joselyn is truly an example of kind, compassionate, and competent nursing. We could all learn from her lead and I wholeheartedly believe this facility would be a better place with more people like her.