Crystal Hurley
September 2021
Crystal
Hurley
,
RN
Labor and Delivery
Grandview Medical Center
Birmingham
,
AL
United States
By the end of the day, I had not progressed...my body wasn’t ready. I was tired and ready to give up, but Crystal wouldn’t let me. She encouraged me
As nurses ourselves, my husband and I had reasonable expectations for our LD journey prior to our arrival. When our journey crossed paths with Crystal, it was clear that she was more than just a nurse. She truly loves her profession and cares for her patients. Her sweet and bubbly personality instantly made me comfortable. She gave us a plan to help guide us, which made us confident that she was the perfect nurse for J’s birthday. She explained everything before it ever happened so that I had time to process it. She was very patient and attentive to our questions and concerns for her full 12-hour shift. She was constantly offering suggestions on what we could do next as far as positioning and other things.
By the end of the day, I had not progressed...my body wasn’t ready. I was tired and ready to give up, but Crystal wouldn’t let me. She encouraged me. After talking to my physician she sat with us and explained our options, and then gave us private time to discuss. My question to her was, “Are you back tomorrow, and could you please be our nurse?” Since she said yes, we decided to pause the Pitocin and epidural, and try again in the morning. I needed the go-getter, patient advocate that wouldn’t give up on me. Again, Crystal would not let us feel defeated. She encouraged us and always had another step to the plan that kept us engaged and gave us something to look forward to. Things progressed slowly that morning and then stalled, but Crystal had another suggestion to try when positioning wasn’t working.
At this point, I told Crystal if she asked me to stand on my head, I’d do it and my husband agreed he’d help. We were completely trusting of her. One hour later I was 10 cm and 100% effaced and could see that she was just as elated as we were. She began to prep me for contractions and pushing, telling me what to expect and how I would feel.... it was at this point I knew that Crystal deserved the most coveted recognition as a nurse... she was a DAISY Nurse. She pushed and encouraged me through 3 hours of pushing, knowing that my primary goal was a vaginal delivery, and I was already on day 3 of laboring. She talked me through every single contraction, listened to my laboring music and enjoyed it with us, introduced every new person that came into the room so that I would be comfortable in my most exposed and vulnerable time.
My absolute favorite was when she and the remaining staff as what song we wanted baby J to be born to... my husband named the song and without skipping a beat she and the staff began singing the chorus to this song. It didn’t stop there. She kept constant communication with me. My IV infiltrated after birth and there was concerns of bleeding. She quickly explained that everything was okay, gave me an immediate dose of Pitocin intramuscularly, and found a new IV site. She never skipped a beat, never paused, and rolled with every single punch she got for both of those 12-hour shifts. There is absolutely nothing that will top my Grandview delivery experience and that’s mostly because of Crystal. All of the staff we encountered were sweet, kind, and genuinely love this place - but we will never forget Crystal and how she played a part in J’s delivery.
Being a first-time mom and experiencing 2.5 days of laboring, a foley balloon induction, 3 hours of pushing, 3 doses of cytotec, 2 rounds of Pitocin, 2 rounds of epidural, and an unknown number of labor positions... most would have given up. I, too, think that I would have given up if it wasn’t for Crystal believing in me and advocating for me when I wasn’t quite sure. She is the reason we crossed the finish line with a vaginal delivery (and safely) after every single roadblock was thrown at her. She is caring, competent, and empathetic. She showed flexibility while maintaining a commitment to patient advocacy. That girl is the definition of a true Florence Nightingale type of nurse.
By the end of the day, I had not progressed...my body wasn’t ready. I was tired and ready to give up, but Crystal wouldn’t let me. She encouraged me. After talking to my physician she sat with us and explained our options, and then gave us private time to discuss. My question to her was, “Are you back tomorrow, and could you please be our nurse?” Since she said yes, we decided to pause the Pitocin and epidural, and try again in the morning. I needed the go-getter, patient advocate that wouldn’t give up on me. Again, Crystal would not let us feel defeated. She encouraged us and always had another step to the plan that kept us engaged and gave us something to look forward to. Things progressed slowly that morning and then stalled, but Crystal had another suggestion to try when positioning wasn’t working.
At this point, I told Crystal if she asked me to stand on my head, I’d do it and my husband agreed he’d help. We were completely trusting of her. One hour later I was 10 cm and 100% effaced and could see that she was just as elated as we were. She began to prep me for contractions and pushing, telling me what to expect and how I would feel.... it was at this point I knew that Crystal deserved the most coveted recognition as a nurse... she was a DAISY Nurse. She pushed and encouraged me through 3 hours of pushing, knowing that my primary goal was a vaginal delivery, and I was already on day 3 of laboring. She talked me through every single contraction, listened to my laboring music and enjoyed it with us, introduced every new person that came into the room so that I would be comfortable in my most exposed and vulnerable time.
My absolute favorite was when she and the remaining staff as what song we wanted baby J to be born to... my husband named the song and without skipping a beat she and the staff began singing the chorus to this song. It didn’t stop there. She kept constant communication with me. My IV infiltrated after birth and there was concerns of bleeding. She quickly explained that everything was okay, gave me an immediate dose of Pitocin intramuscularly, and found a new IV site. She never skipped a beat, never paused, and rolled with every single punch she got for both of those 12-hour shifts. There is absolutely nothing that will top my Grandview delivery experience and that’s mostly because of Crystal. All of the staff we encountered were sweet, kind, and genuinely love this place - but we will never forget Crystal and how she played a part in J’s delivery.
Being a first-time mom and experiencing 2.5 days of laboring, a foley balloon induction, 3 hours of pushing, 3 doses of cytotec, 2 rounds of Pitocin, 2 rounds of epidural, and an unknown number of labor positions... most would have given up. I, too, think that I would have given up if it wasn’t for Crystal believing in me and advocating for me when I wasn’t quite sure. She is the reason we crossed the finish line with a vaginal delivery (and safely) after every single roadblock was thrown at her. She is caring, competent, and empathetic. She showed flexibility while maintaining a commitment to patient advocacy. That girl is the definition of a true Florence Nightingale type of nurse.