Our son had a 53-day NICU stay this spring, and Olga Sanchez was one of our nurses during that time frame. Not only was Olga incredible with our boy, but she also was a calming, peaceful presence for us as parents and helped us remain steady through the chaos of a long-term NICU stay. She was always very patient and relaxed when caring for my son. We never felt that his care or needs were an inconvenience to her, and she was happy to spend whatever time with him he needed, even when his medical needs had been addressed. As a parent splitting your time between home and NICU, knowing that your baby is receiving love and compassion on top of necessary medical care makes a difference in your ability to step away when needed. Having a toddler at home meant this was our reality – time split between our children. Knowing that Olga was caring for our child made it much easier to step away and focus on our oldest because we knew he was being well-loved.
However, Olga’s true impact on us as a family came through in her compassion for our family as a whole, especially for me – not only as the patient’s mom but our oldest son's mom as well. It can be easy to forget about the family unit as a whole in circumstances like this, especially when you’re on the medical team for a baby long term, which is very understandable, especially where the medical needs of the baby are pretty heavy. But with Olga, it was never just about the patient – she would seek me out to ensure I was doing okay, ask about big brother, and even celebrate with us when our boys finally met for the first time.
I will never forget Olga going out of her way to sit at the bedside with me for a few moments during the hardest Mother’s Day I’ve experienced to check in on me. I was really struggling that day. Nothing looked like how it should have – I was angry, anxious, and barely hanging in there. That small action of coming to find and sit with me helped me to recenter and remember that we could get through this.
I also received text messages from my husband about the times he would run into her up there, telling me she asked how I was doing and when I would be there so she could check in on me. The compassion she showed me as a mother during this experience helped me through our eight-week stay.
The NICU team is incredibly blessed to have Olga as a nurse, and any family facing the challenge of starting their baby’s life out in the NICU deserves to have someone just like her in their corner.
Olga, thank you for loving our boy, and thank you for loving us – you truly had an incredible impact on our journey.