June 2015
Pat
Gibbons
,
RN
Labor and Delivery
Saint Clare's Health System
Denville
,
NJ
United States
Pat Gibbons, RN, was presented with a DAISY award because she is an unsung hero for the excellent care she provides to our families experiencing a loss of their baby. Each family experiences grief differently and sometimes they know ahead of time their baby has passed and others, unfortunately come to our unit expecting to take home a live baby and find out there is no heart beat. The care that must be provided to these families is not only critical but difficult. Pat helps them go through one of the most memorable and life changing events in their lives, a birth, and then help them transition their feelings to deal with the grief of losing a much wanted baby. The care Pat takes with each family is really special. It is hard to pick out just one case to discuss or point out because she does an amazing job with each family. It is not something many can do or want to do, but one of the real strengths Pat has is in caring for the beloved baby. She lovingly washes the babies and prepares them for the proper viewing by their families. She picks out clothes to put them in and lovingly dresses them and then takes very tasteful photos for the family to have of this child that came into the world and left so quickly. Creating memories is one thing Pat is really good at, putting the photos and mementos of the baby, like a lock of hair, footprints, etc in this memory box and giving it to the families before they go home. The care and concern Pat displays with all of these families is remarkable and commendable and she does it better than anyone. If one experiences fetal demise, one would want Gibbons, as we all call her, to care for you. Caring describes what she does for these families, not only for the Mom and Dad for the baby but also the extended families that are mourning this loss.