September 2020
Hans
Christensen
,
RN, BSN
ICU
Silver Cross Hospital
New Lenox
,
IL
United States
From our first phone conversation with Hans, we instantly knew our dad was in good hands.
Our father was admitted to the Silver Cross ICU and passed away as a result of complications related to COVID-19. Within hours of being admitted, he was placed on a ventilator and sedated. We were never able to speak directly with him from the time he was admitted until the day he passed away. The loss of a loved one is always sad. The loss of a loved one during the COVID-19 global pandemic is nearly impossible to explain. It's likely we don't have a word in the English language to capture it, but some combination of surreal, heartbreaking, helpless, and devastating come to mind. Our father was our family patriarch and anchor. He was a phenomenal dad in every sense having raised four boys with strong morals, consummate integrity, and respect for each other and all others. We are honored to have called him dad. He was a proud Papa to seven grandchildren and countless other kids who called him Papa, too. His reach extended far as a coach, mentor, and man of integrity...far further than we ever knew as we're learning now through friends and family near and far as they reach out to share stories, pictures, and memories of him.
Hans was our father's nurse in the days leading up to his death. At this point, our dad had been in the Silver Cross ICU for eight days. From our first phone conversation with Hans, we instantly knew our dad was in good hands. Over the three days Hans spent with our dad, three things stood out that make him a DAISY Nurse. First, his communication approach was top-notch. In these unprecedented times with not being able to visit our father or have eye-to-eye conversations with his caregivers, Hans spent time updating us on our dad’s vitals and any other relevant information since our last phone update. He anticipated our questions and never made us feel rushed. We understood that he couldn’t pick up the phone every time we called, and we tried to keep calls to a minimum. We were confident that he would call back every single time, and he did. Second, we could tell that Hans is an excellent nurse. His knowledge and expertise were evident each time we spoke. He explained new medical interventions being considered and helped paint a picture of what was going on, intuitively knowing that we needed to be able to visualize our dad’s treatment and care.
Hans was our father's nurse in the days leading up to his death. At this point, our dad had been in the Silver Cross ICU for eight days. From our first phone conversation with Hans, we instantly knew our dad was in good hands. Over the three days Hans spent with our dad, three things stood out that make him a DAISY Nurse. First, his communication approach was top-notch. In these unprecedented times with not being able to visit our father or have eye-to-eye conversations with his caregivers, Hans spent time updating us on our dad’s vitals and any other relevant information since our last phone update. He anticipated our questions and never made us feel rushed. We understood that he couldn’t pick up the phone every time we called, and we tried to keep calls to a minimum. We were confident that he would call back every single time, and he did. Second, we could tell that Hans is an excellent nurse. His knowledge and expertise were evident each time we spoke. He explained new medical interventions being considered and helped paint a picture of what was going on, intuitively knowing that we needed to be able to visualize our dad’s treatment and care.