My father was admitted to Tampa General Hospital. I live in Virginia, so it took some time to get to Tampa, but I arrived at the hospital around 1 am the next day. After several procedures and a cystotomy, he ended up in the ICU. I received a phone call early that morning from the hospital that I needed to come soon because he'd become septic and it didn't look good. Upon arrival, I got lost trying to locate ICU and a doctor walking the hall noticed my confusion and asked where I was going. It turned out that he was my father's doctor and as he escorted me to my father's room he explained that the situation was dire. He was very kind and compassionate. I was also introduced to his nurse, Linda, and she is my reason for contacting you.
Doctors tend to discuss their specialty and how it relates to the patient's situation, which doesn't always give the overall picture. That's where the nurses come in. Linda could see that I was overwhelmed with information and couldn't quite put the pieces together. She patiently explained what was happening and how Sepsis attacks the body. I was aware of my father's DNR wishes but when you're in the moment it's hard to see the forest for the trees. Linda was kind, gentle, informative and compassionate. She answered each question I could think of to ask. She helped calm my father when he was in pain, or scared, or both. She worked tirelessly to keep him comfortable and to make sure my husband and I were as comfortable as possible. We left the ICU for a little bit to step away and get some perspective. When we returned it was obvious that he was not getting better, and in fact, was getting worse despite everyone's efforts. She kindly gave me an update to his situation and I realized it was time to stop what we were doing, it wasn't going to change the outcome. The Palliative Care doctor was standing in the doorway when I told Linda that we were done, and it was agreed that we would discontinue treatment. Linda worked quickly and efficiently to make my father as comfortable as he could be, made sure we were as comfortable and as prepared as possible and he peacefully passed away 20 minutes later.
Linda made the hardest decision of my life (allowing the man who had been both my mother and my father for over 45 years, my only blood relative, and my safety net, to leave this earth at my hand) as painless as possible. Her compassion, knowledge, and spirit are amazing and you're lucky to have her on your staff. Her patients are even luckier! I hope she knows how appreciative I am of her unflinching love and support on one of the saddest days of my life. Her compassion is the thing I remember most when I think back on that day. She truly cares for her patients and their families and we were lucky she was in our lives for that 12-hour period.