I would first like to tell you a little bit about myself if only to help you understand how special Sarah is. I started my relationship with Rex Hospital in late May 2019. I was diagnosed with diverticulitis. My doctors ordered numerous tests to confirm what they already expected. Unfortunately, the test results weren't what they expected. This led to further testing, which led to news that shook my world. They found a tumor in my upper intestine by chance. My Doctor called late to say, "Mr. R the results on the tumor we took a biopsy of has come back from pathology, your tumor is malignant." My mind raced to find the definition of malignant, something I already knew, hoping I was wrong. I had a gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST). The tumors are located in any part of the digestive system. My tumor was located in a bad place up close to my stomach in the C bend of the intestines right on top of my aorta. I was referred to my surgeon, who told me he found another one a little lower down. Needless to say, this all made me kind of numb, I was lost, a ringing in my ears as I processed the information. As my family and friends rallied behind me with support, we were preparing for the worst.
I have two sons, B is 5 and N is 11. N my oldest son is very protective over me, his mother and I separated before he was born. I tried to make the best of a bad situation as his mother wasn't ready to be a parent. The last time N and I saw or heard from his mother was for his kindergarten graduation. This July N started the 6th grade. My son is very fearful of something happening to me, or losing me. He has told me that I was all he had left. This fear existed before my diagnosis, if I cut or hurt myself in any way he would ask if I need to go to the doctor or repeatedly ask me if I was ok. N being old enough to understand what's going on, I never hide anything from him, mostly because, like all kids his age, he's always listening and would eventually figure it out. My youngest son B was and still is completely oblivious. For the first few days of my stay, I didn't let him come up to see me because I was feeling rough and probably looked even worse. I don't recall if I met Sarah before Saturday but definitely, I do remember her from then on.
I had many great nurses but Sarah happened to be there on one of my worst days. I honestly felt like I was not going to make it out of the hospital, I told my family how much I loved them and asked that they made sure that my boys knew I loved them and that they grew to be gentlemen. My family was in tears at my pain and the thought of losing me. Sarah seeing both me and my family's pain did everything to comfort and console us. After exhausting everything she could do she called in the doctor. The doctor came in and spoke to me and my family. He felt that I looked bad enough that he ordered an emergency scan to make sure there were no internal problems. After returning to the room I was met by Sarah and my family. She made the decision to stop my feeding until she spoke with a doctor. She made sure I was as comfortable as possible. I tried my best to sleep as the day turned to night, I began to feel a little better. My girlfriend sat talking to me about the day and how I was feeling, she told me that Sarah had been in and out, multiple times to check on me being sure not to let anyone wake me for any reason. My girlfriend expressed her admiration for Sarah then told me that during my worst tear-filled part of the day that she had seen Sarah outside of my door gently crying.
A day or so later I was feeling much better and had distanced myself from what I was sure was certain death. My nurses came in to change shifts and introduce their replacement, it was Sarah again greeting us with a big smile and a soft voice "You're still here", we laughed a bit because we knew I was going to be there a bit longer. She asked how I was feeling, and I genuinely felt she cared. She then asked my mother and girlfriend how they were and shared some personal experiences that had them laughing and not thinking of the rough days prior. Before she left the room, she made sure everyone was comfortable and didn't need anything. A little later in the day, I decided to have my oldest son come see me, as my son walked through the door and he could see all the tubes hanging out of my body, you could see the concern take over his face. Sarah, moments later, walked into the room with new food and the syringe to flush my feeding tube, as well as a cup to empty by wound vac. Sarah immediately noticed the concern in his face and asked him to assist her. Reluctantly, he said yes with some encouragement. N was fearful of hurting me, Sarah walked him through each step teaching him to flush and clean with a hands-on approach. By the end, N was smiling and feeling much better about things Sarah assured him that he wouldn't be losing me anytime soon.
Being empathetic and compassionate isn't something you can learn in nursing school nor is it a job requirement. I believe these qualities come from the heart of someone who truly loves what they do, someone who has a passion for caring and healing others. Sarah taking the time to show my son these things and put his mind at ease wasn't something she had to do, she did it because of the person she is. I believe that Sarah and her compassion for both me and my family played a huge role in my mental and physical healing. I truly felt that she cared for us, people she had never net before, and had no obligation to comfort outside of doing her job as a nurse. I can say without a doubt that Sarah Wicker from 7-West is a DAISY Nurse because of the amazing nurse and human being that she is. Her compassion and humanity went far beyond the call of duty. My family and I would like to thank her as well as the rest of the nursing staff from the bottom of our hearts.