how did I know?

Several years ago while taking care of this woman it became very apparent that immediate intervention was necessary or she was not going to make it through the night. Her blood pressure was dropping, she was becoming very lethargic.

I had called the doctor and after he and I had reviewed her chart and her lab work he came to the conclusion that she needed a blood transfusion and needed it right away!

To add to her already perilous state she was severely demented and confused as alzheimers disease had taken its toll on her body. Due to her condition she was unable to sign consent for this so I went to the chart to find the appropriate family member's phone numbers and make the middle of the night calls that no nurse likes to make...

This is where it gets interesting...

The only phone number was for her husband who just so happened to be out of town on business and no one had thought to get his cell phone number!

Now, I had never met this lady before the night that I came to work nor did her name look familiar to me but "something" told me who she was. I in my moment of need instantly knew who this lady was! She was the mom of a friend of my mom's!

I have absolutly no explenation as to how I knew this other than the hand of God directing me to this but once I knew there was never any doubt.

Then there was my next hurdle to jump over. This daughter was not listed in the chart and patient confidenciality is so important I didn't have any right to simply call her and state the patients need for intervention.

I met with my nursing supervisor who, to her defense did not look at me like I had totally lost all my marbles when I explained that I knew who the lady was even though I didn't know who the lady was... After much discussion we decided that I should call the doctor back and discuss it with him. That was my green light because I knew that he knew the family personally and could confirm the connection!

Another bend in the road came when I couldn't figure out how to get ahold of this daughter at approx 4:00 AM... My only option seemed so impossible that I didn't even want to say it out loud. My nursing supervisor thought it was a great idea...

Yes, I called my mom, at 4:00 AM to get her friends phone number, to then call the daughter to then get the consent to transuse the blood...

By morning my patient's blood pressure had started to stabelize, she was still very lethargic.

On his way to work, her son in law stopped by and asked me about the night. He already knew some of it since he ahd been there when I had called the and spoken to his wife but it was such a relief and joy to be able to share with another believer how God's hand directs us.

not wearing gloves this time...

My life away from the hospital I am married to my life as a youth sponsor. It is a fascinating life, full of adventure and chugging sodas the fastest...never boring.

I have recently embarked leg of this journey that is of the utmost sensitive in nature and confidentiality must be guarded at each turn. This is and has been a real challenge for me and has caused me to grow spiritually as I am charged with giving delicate advice to another.

Ahhhhh...I guess I am wearing gloves in this as well.

she stopped breathing

Just last night I was standing at the nurses station a few minuets after my shift had started not really sure what I was supposed to do because I was the assigned "super user" (neither here nor there for you non SJHW nurses!!!), drinking my first of many cups of coffee when a man walks up to me and says, "She stopped breathing."

In the hospital that sentence can mean several different things.

1. Start CPR and call a code blue.
2. Go assess the patient, call the intensive care doctor for immediate intervention.
   
3. An expected death, need to pronounce the patient dead.

As I said, I was the nurse who hadn't really received an assignment, so I didn't really know anything about our 30+ patients last night! Another nurse over heard and jumped up knowing that this was situation number 3, an expected death, where 2 nurses are called to the room to pronounce the patient dead and offer support to the family.

Here goes. I put down my coffee cup. Track down a stethoscope (have I mentioned that I am not acting as a patient care nurse on this shift???) Put on my stoic face and go to face the family. Only problem is, the grandson who came and spoke to me in the first place is standing right beside me the entire time!

"TIME TO PULL IT TOGETHER." Yes, I'm talking to myself as I walk down the hall! This is part of the job. I am trying to convince myself that it was simply the shock of the situation that has me all rattles but rattled I am.

I enter the room with the other nurse, the grandson, stethoscopes at the ready. There is another grieving loved one at the bedside.

I pause.

I do my job.

The patient is dead.

I leave.

The family continues to gather in the patient's room as is common and I have intermittent interaction with them. Because of my still up in the air assignment I take on alot of the communication that we nurses must do when we have a death but I am never again in the patients room.

I spoke with the woman who had been in the room when she had passed away to offer my condolences and she thanked me. The two of us got to talking and she was sharing some of the family dynamics and I felt that I could share my role in the situation. She felt that somehow I had not only "pulled it together" but had been both professional and supportive just when she needed it the most.

This had to have been the hand of God.

what started it all

I never thought of myself as a blogger. In fact it has only been in the past couple of weeks that I have become interested in blogging at all.

The reason that I am now blogging at all is because of a challenge of a dear friend of mine. This friend who I will later tell you more about asked me to journal my nursing stories.

There have been many times through the years that I have felt like I do this job for simply that, a job but then I remember why I became a nurse and I remember those times as a little girl playing dress up with my brothers... When ever someone would ask what are you going to be when you grow up my response would always be, "I'm going to be a nurse!" So yes I always wanted to be a nurse but it is more than that, I want to use my skills to heal. Not just physically but spiritually as well. I serve my Lord in an often dark world and it is my calling and my duty to reach these people. Most often it isn't even by preaching but by loving and listening.

So back to my friend, in another blog I will share why she has become so interested in my sharing my stories but it was her on a Sunday afternoon in August who begged me to start writing. I am not a writer so I hope you will all forgive me but please keep reading and give feedback. I want to know what people are thinking.

Tell your story

You never know who might just need to know what you have to share.

I went to work last week and once again received my assignment. This time one of my patients was a lady in her mid 40's who had just been diagnosed with kidney cancer. She had a past history of suicide attempts and wanted a nicotine patch. My assigned task for the night was to keep her comfortable and to get her that patch.

Looking back, I have absolutely no idea how she and I got on the subject of my incredibly large family but we did and we got to laughing over the big Christmases and the cousin stories. She asked what my brothers did for a living, how they are raising their children. Why I am still single. We talked about my family...

She described us as successful. I guess we are, God has been very good to the Hunt family.

My phone rang, telling me that another patient needed me. She took my hand and said, "thank you for sharing your story. I needed to hear that fairy tales do come true."

I don't know how much my telling her story really changed anything, but I do know that I didn't have to give her any pain medicine all night.

Patients can be healers too

Anyone if open to being used can be used by God.

I came to work and received my assignment and the very first patient listed was a 91 year old lady who had suffered a massive stroke that day. I immediately balked at the assignment for you see I had only a month ago buried my grandfather and wasn't ready to be the supportive nurse to a grieving family while they said their final good buys to their own loved one.

What I had yet to realize was that the very next day was going to be her 92nd birthday! Again, I rebelled, "how can I do this God?", I asked,"this just isn't right". I pulled myself together because that was what I was expected to do and went into the room to see my patient. I had to wade in past multiple family members who had gathered with her and I could barely reach her to do any sort of nursing assessment. I spoke with a daughter who with a smile on her face and tears in her eyes told me that all of her children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren and even a couple of great-great-grandchildren had all gathered in her hospital room to celebrate her birthday. I being the nurse told them all looked ok and that I would soon return but if they needed anything to call for me and I would be there as soon as possible, you know, just what I was supposed to say.

Around midnight I returned to the even more crowded room to check on my patient and was able to observe an awesome display of love. The entire family had crowded into the patient's room and were singing happy birthday to her. Her daughter then leaned over to her mom's ear and said, "Mom, go have the best birthday ever. Go walk with Jesus and go see Daddy!" I slipped away, unnoticed. They didn't need a nurse.

It was then that my own emotional and spiritual healing began. God used my patient and her family to let me give my own Grandpa over to Him completely.

my first blog

I have only ever posted blogs on myspace and they have been short. I would like to make this something that friends and others will want to read.

I have recently been challenged to journal my nursing stories. I believe that I am in nursing because God has chosen me to touch lives, thus the name of my blog. I will be using this blog to tell some of those stories as well as what ever else I decide to discuss.

I don't want this in anyway to be about glorifying myself but the one that I serve, My Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Without Him I am nothing.

So without further ado I will now post this as my first blog.