A young family arrived in the ETC with their four-year-old daughter. The mother was having a miscarriage. As the mother was being examined and treated, the daughter began acting out. She did not like the fact that her mother was out of her sight nor that her mother was crying. Kristin took initiative to ask the little girl if she wanted some apple juice. The little girl said she did and Kristin took her for a walk to get the juice. She was able to distract the little girl and not only got her apple juice, but also a Popsicle. Before it was over, Kristin gave the little girl the double chocolate chip cookie that she got for her birthday. This had the four-year-old smiling from ear to ear!
While the doctor attended to the mother, Kristin sat at her desk with the little girl. She kept the little girl distracted as she talked about different things, ate cookies and drank juice. The little girl was no longer upset and found comfort with her new friend. The husband was able to comfort his wife without worrying about his daughter. Kristin sat for at least thirty minutes, taking time out of her busy schedule to go above and beyond to make a difference for this family during a difficult time. This was not Kristin's patient, but she stepped up at an important time to show compassion and be an exceptional team player.
Kristin had a PCT get the little girl a teddy bear for good behavior. As we transferred the mother to surgery, the daughter was better, waved "good bye" to us and gave Kristin a big hug.