August 2022
Bailey N
Strausser
,
RN, PCCN
Medical Intensive Care Unit
University of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics
Iowa City
,
IA
United States
Bailey Strausser cared for a patient nearing the end of their life in the MICU and truly went above and beyond to care for this patient's family. The family was Catholic and didn't want their loved one to pass without anointing and last rites from a Catholic priest. After difficulties attempting to reach the on-call Catholic chaplain overnight, Bailey went above and beyond to provide a patient with end-of-life spiritual services. She contacted the on-call interfaith chaplain, who provided interim spiritual support, while she continued to look for a local priest in the area. After many attempts at contact, Bailey reached out to another hospital in the area to see if they knew of a Catholic priest who would anoint the patient. Through this process, she found a priest who was able to anoint the patient and perform last rites over the phone. This gesture was incredibly meaningful to this patient's family. After coordinating all of this, Bailey then proceeded to write a thank you card to the Catholic priest from herself and the on-call interfaith chaplain. In quoting the interfaith chaplain who worked with her through this process, "during a very difficult night, Bailey showed compassion, team-spirit, determination, resolve, and bestowed the great gift of dignity on everyone involved. It was a gift to work alongside Bailey."