July 2023
Bridget L
Kurp
,
BSN, RN
Antepartum High-Risk
Atrium Health Carolinas Medical Center
Charlotte
,
NC
United States
She knew she needed to stay there to support this baby's mama even though she had never witnessed the passing of a baby before.
I was helping take care of a baby in the NICU that was doing quite poorly. The mother had not known she was pregnant making the baby a surprise. He was also born at an outlying facility. The baby had to be transported to LCH for potential ECMO & therapeutic hypothermia. When the mom came down to see her baby, her nurse came with her and stayed by her side. The mom didn't have anyone but her own father with her and she didn't speak English. She had no one else with her but her nurse. Bridget was able to provide much-needed support to this mother in one of the most difficult and hardest moments of her life. During that shift, the infant continued to decline. Instead of having him cannulated for ECMO, which he may not have survived, his mom decided to hold him and provide him with comfort care. When she came down to do so, she was with her nurse, Bridget Kurp. Bridget Kurp stayed by this mom's side throughout the entire removal of support and the infant's death, even when the NICU assured her she could go back to her unit. She knew she needed to stay there to support this baby's mama even though she had never witnessed the passing of a baby before. And although she didn't speak the same language as the mom, she was able to provide both her and her son the most compassionate care through the language of love.