A Note for My Fellow Nurses…

Something that has really been on my heart during this whole Covid-19 Pandemic is how lonely of an experience it is for our patients.

Imagine being an elderly patient, away from your family and friends. You aren’t allowed to exit the room and can’t figure out this pesky phone to call for help. You already don’t feel good and now you really don’t have anyone there with you. You were rushed away from your home, so you don’t have your glasses to read or see the television in the room, and to top it off your hearing aid and cell phone battery are dying. Can’t imagine things getting much worse. But guess what, they do. Because everyone is so afraid of catching this virus, the doctor doesn’t come in the room to see you, he calls you from the nursing station. At least the nurses are coming to see you, right? They do come in the room, but only for short periods of time. Maybe only 3 for 4 times during their shift, because lets face it, they don’t want it either. But great news, you are doing well enough to go home. But how? You ask. None of your family is willing to pick you up because, well, you know.

It’s amazing to me how people have forgotten their humanity. I had a patient that hadn’t bathed in several days. No one had changed their bed or even offered a washcloth to wash their face. I know we are all dealing with a lot out here, from quarantining to lack of PPE, but what about what the patient is dealing with in their room. Alone. We can’t forget to give care.

These are difficult times and no one really know what the best thing to do is. But I was reminded during a quarantine movie night, that we have to do “the next right thing. ”( I finally watched Frozen 2) . Its true that we need to reduce the amount of exposure we have, but make the time you do spend in the room valuable. Let the patient know that you will be calling them occasionally to check on them, and actually call them. Before you go back in the room, ask them if there’s anything that they need so that you can bring in on your next visit. Open the blinds in the room, for sunshine, or turn lights on. Give them a clean gown, toothbrush, and toothpaste. Talk to them, and not only about their diagnosis. We may literally be the only people they see.

We are in a unique position. We must fulfill our professional role, but also fill in for the families that can’t be there with their loved one. Your patient is someone’s mother, father, husband, wife or child, not a room number or diagnosis.

Remember your nursing heart.