I met a nurse that would make a lasting impact on my family and me when we went in for the birth of our daughter. During our four night stay at Legacy Hospital, all the nurses and doctors were amazing, but the nurse that went above and beyond for our family was nurse Alicia Summerson. She was the nurse that checked us in when we arrived, and she was also there to walk us all the way down to the car and see us off after our baby was born.
When we arrived, I was very nervous about the induction process. I had had a traumatic failed induction that ended in emergency cesarean 19 months prior and was terrified that is birth would end up the same way. Nurse Alicia was always so supportive of my VBAC and made me feel so much more confident in my ability to have the birth that I desperately wanted. She never made me feel like I was a ticking time bomb for another c-section. She took the time to ask me questions about myself and my family. We talked about our move from Chicago to the Northwest and about my 19- month old son, who I had never left overnight before. I never felt like just another patient to her, I felt like she actually cared about what I had to say.
Things progressed well and I was able to have the natural birth I wanted. It just so happened that Alicia was working again on the day that we were checking out. Although she was assigned to another patient, she took the time to come see us and ask about how our birth went and meet our new baby! She knew how much we were missing our son, so she helped us get everything we needed to be able to leave the hospital and get back home.
We weren't even her patients that day, we were not her responsibility, she did the things she did because she wanted to do them! When we were able to leave she pushed me in my wheelchair all the way down to our car and helped me in. She gave us hugs like we were old friends saying goodbye. A few days later I was so touched by how far nurse Alicia went out of her way for us I knew I needed to find a way to honor her and get her the recognition she needed. I posted on my local moms' group about my experience and not surprisingly there were many other women that had the same labor and delivery experience with nurse Alicia Summerson! It takes a very special to leave a lasting impression on so many people the way she has, that's why Alicia is a true DAISY Nurse!