September 2023
Caitlin
Rapp
,
RN
Pediatric Intensive Care Unit
MercyOne Medical Center
Des Moines
,
IA
United States
When Mom was ready for them to come into the room, Caitlin took the time to explain to each of the children what their brother looked like and where it was ok to stand and touch.
We recently had a patient get admitted to the PICU post CPR with a very poor prognosis. The child's parent was a single mother who had her other children here with her due to the situation. The oldest two had witnessed CPR in the ED, and the younger children didn't understand what was going on. Caitlin went above and beyond helping with the siblings so that I could focus on taking care of the patient. Caitlin set up a room for the children across the hall. She set up the PlayStation so they could watch movies and offered snacks and activities. When Mom was ready for them to come into the room, Caitlin took the time to explain to each of the children what their brother looked like and where it was ok to stand and touch. She then held the little one's hands and walked them into the room and over to Mom. While this is definitely not the first time that she has gone above and beyond for a family, it meant a lot for her to help fill that role that other family members or Child Life might normally do in these situations.