Rebekah Halcome
August 2023
Rebekah
Halcome
,
RN
CCU
Terrebonne General Health System
Houma
,
LA
United States
In the week leading up to my grandfather's death, I watched him fight to prove his resiliency. Nurse Halcome would give him that respect for his dignity and mental capacity through to the very end.
Our family lost our patriarch. It was through the compassion and caring nature of Rebekah Halcome that our family was to be at peace with my grandfather’s choice to pursue comfort care, as his condition would not allow him to return to the quality of life that he had only days before the down turn of his chronic condition.
My grandfather was one of the great generations of tough Bayou men. He seemed invincible, made of steel, and nothing will ever change my opinion of him. In the week leading up to his death, I watched him fight to prove his resiliency. Nurse Halcome would give him that respect for his dignity and mental capacity through to the very end. Recognizing his discomfort and his struggle to breathe, Nurse Halcome would treat him as if they were able to communicate without saying a word. Her careful watch of his vital signs and his deteriorating condition, she would be there to make him comfortable without taking away time that he had left with our family.
Rebekah seemed to understand both sides of the bed, the side of my grandfather, the side of a compassionate nurse, and the best interest of my family’s feelings. Ms. Rebekah would become like a member of our family as she bonded with us and helped us with the passing of my grandfather. It never felt like Ms. Rebekah left our side, even though knowing she had other patients to care for, she would leave the room but was always there when we needed her. Rebekah would go above and beyond on that sad day in our world, bringing our family together and understanding the process.
There is no doubt that my grandfather died with peace and surrounded by love. I don’t feel that a moment was taken for granted, nor do I feel that his final day was rushed or in pain as nurse Rebekah would show the exemplary professionalism, compassion, and knowledge to educate that should be the expectation of all nurses, but we seem to have been lost along the way. It is nurses like Rebekah Halcome who are role models not only for people to consider a nursing career but also for nurses to emulate.
My grandfather was one of the great generations of tough Bayou men. He seemed invincible, made of steel, and nothing will ever change my opinion of him. In the week leading up to his death, I watched him fight to prove his resiliency. Nurse Halcome would give him that respect for his dignity and mental capacity through to the very end. Recognizing his discomfort and his struggle to breathe, Nurse Halcome would treat him as if they were able to communicate without saying a word. Her careful watch of his vital signs and his deteriorating condition, she would be there to make him comfortable without taking away time that he had left with our family.
Rebekah seemed to understand both sides of the bed, the side of my grandfather, the side of a compassionate nurse, and the best interest of my family’s feelings. Ms. Rebekah would become like a member of our family as she bonded with us and helped us with the passing of my grandfather. It never felt like Ms. Rebekah left our side, even though knowing she had other patients to care for, she would leave the room but was always there when we needed her. Rebekah would go above and beyond on that sad day in our world, bringing our family together and understanding the process.
There is no doubt that my grandfather died with peace and surrounded by love. I don’t feel that a moment was taken for granted, nor do I feel that his final day was rushed or in pain as nurse Rebekah would show the exemplary professionalism, compassion, and knowledge to educate that should be the expectation of all nurses, but we seem to have been lost along the way. It is nurses like Rebekah Halcome who are role models not only for people to consider a nursing career but also for nurses to emulate.