When you look at life's moments, many are filled with happy days and hopefully only a few sad or fearful days. Surgery is usually one of the most fearful. The day leading up to my mom's surgery was one of the most fearful in my life. Dread overcame us as we were checking to admissions. The fear turned to smiles, laughter and assurance of my mom's safety when Joy became her nurse. She came in as a ray of light. For the first time in days my mom smiled and we all were laughing before we knew it.
Joy wasn't just a nurse giving her same rehearsed introduction; she was sincere and genuine. It wasn't just rush to the OR; she read the room and treated us all as one patient unit, addressing and treating our concerns and needs. We could also see how much the admission nurse enjoyed her, too. She jumped in and helped her and ran out and retrieved items for her. When my mom wheeled out of that room towards surgery I envisioned myself in tears but instead I felt a sense of happiness and security, thanks to Joy Hume.