Karen Brand
January 2020
Karen
Brand
,
BSN, RN, DNP AC-PNP
Pediatric Palliative Care
UC Davis Medical Center
Sacramento
,
CA
United States
Karen Brand is an extraordinaire nurse, showing warmth, love, and caring to all the patients, families, and staff she encounters. On one particular occasion, Karen showed wonderful compassion in her actions when caring for a 15-year-old patient, who had attempted suicide and eventually transitioned to comfort care and died peacefully in the hospital.
This 15-year-old boy, who was found by his 10-year-old brother hanging pulseless by a bathrobe cord from his lower bunk, revived but brought in with a GCS of 3 and hypoxic brain injury. Palliative care was asked to consult 3 days after admission. The patient had a complex family life. He was living with his father, stepmother and two siblings and had just moved into the area. His mother lived in Arkansas and was really struggling not being able to be with her son. Ultimately, the father had made the decision to make the patient comfort care. The mother of the child was against this option but did not have custody rights, making for a challenging family dynamic that weighed heavily on the family and staff who were involved in the patient's care.
Karen made a stressful time bearable and supported the patient, family and staff members to feel less distress. When Karen visited the patient, she would always hold the patient's hand, and engaged with the patient, letting him know the care he is receiving, and the support from his family. Karen empowered the family to bring in things that the patient loved and play the patient's favorite music.
Karen was instrumental in providing education and support for the family as the patient started to decline. When the patient was declining, the family was struggling with feeding tube issues and whether to transition him to comfort care or continue to have aggressive treatments. There were family dynamics and conflicts that Karen navigated with integrity and compassion.
The night shift nurses were also having a difficult time with this situation and feeling isolated on nights and experiencing gaps in information. Karen went far and beyond by meeting with the night shift nurses during their shift and provided support and bridging the gap by providing information to decrease tension and distress. After the patient died peacefully, Karen remained in contact with both father and family and mother and family, to offer continued support.
This 15-year-old boy, who was found by his 10-year-old brother hanging pulseless by a bathrobe cord from his lower bunk, revived but brought in with a GCS of 3 and hypoxic brain injury. Palliative care was asked to consult 3 days after admission. The patient had a complex family life. He was living with his father, stepmother and two siblings and had just moved into the area. His mother lived in Arkansas and was really struggling not being able to be with her son. Ultimately, the father had made the decision to make the patient comfort care. The mother of the child was against this option but did not have custody rights, making for a challenging family dynamic that weighed heavily on the family and staff who were involved in the patient's care.
Karen made a stressful time bearable and supported the patient, family and staff members to feel less distress. When Karen visited the patient, she would always hold the patient's hand, and engaged with the patient, letting him know the care he is receiving, and the support from his family. Karen empowered the family to bring in things that the patient loved and play the patient's favorite music.
Karen was instrumental in providing education and support for the family as the patient started to decline. When the patient was declining, the family was struggling with feeding tube issues and whether to transition him to comfort care or continue to have aggressive treatments. There were family dynamics and conflicts that Karen navigated with integrity and compassion.
The night shift nurses were also having a difficult time with this situation and feeling isolated on nights and experiencing gaps in information. Karen went far and beyond by meeting with the night shift nurses during their shift and provided support and bridging the gap by providing information to decrease tension and distress. After the patient died peacefully, Karen remained in contact with both father and family and mother and family, to offer continued support.