My father was sent to the hospital by ambulance because he "wasn't feeling himself." Little did we know, he was going to take his last breaths in the ICU two weeks later. In those two weeks, I spent every day in the hospital and had the opportunity to interact with many workers in several departments. Things were constantly changing with my father's health status and at one point we were even preparing for his discharge home.
One day, things took a turn for the worse and we were asked to make a very quick and difficult decision. That night we honored my father's wishes and said goodbye. I woke up to what was supposed to be the worst night of my life to hear that my father was still alive and had not passed as expected. You can imagine how traumatic it can be for a 30-year-old to have to say goodbye to her father not once, but twice.
Walking into the hospital on that last day of my father's life, I was relieved to meet this nurse. During hard times, usually you rely on your family to help you through; however, for me, Kristina was part of that support system. She was patient and kind, and complied with every one of my father's requests, making sure he was comfortable during his last hours. She answered every question that I had and checked on me, to make sure I was okay.
Kristina showed me what it was like to just be a really good human being. She was probably just doing her job, but to me, having her as my father's nurse made things just a little less painful and I could not thank her enough. The ICU and Bridgeport Hospital is lucky to have a nurse like her working on their team!