There are some things about hospitals you can depend on. The elevators will take forever. The food in the cafeteria will be terrible. The machine that holds the IV will make weird beeping noises whenever the nurse leaves the room. I’ve spent a fair amount of time in hospitals – as a visitor, not a patient – and I know what to expect.
It’s my 85-year-old mother-in-law who is in the hospital right now, after falling and breaking a hip. Unfortunately, the injury seems to have stirred up a host of medical issues, and she’s in pretty bad shape. It’s been tough for her to keep up her spirits, since every piece of news she gets about her health seems to be bad news.
But brings me to the other thing that you can depend on in hospitals: cheerful, energetic hospital nurses. Seriously, I don’t know how these nurses do it. The young woman who was taking care of my mother-in-law yesterday was working a sixteen-hour shift and yet, she remained upbeat and smiling the whole time I was there. This afternoon, the nurse on duty bounced into the room as if she was coming to a party, smiling and chattering with my mother-in-law as she checked her vital signs. That’s been my experience with nurses: in addition to doing their jobs, they bring such positive energy into the room. I am so grateful for their presence.
It’s my 85-year-old mother-in-law who is in the hospital right now, after falling and breaking a hip. Unfortunately, the injury seems to have stirred up a host of medical issues, and she’s in pretty bad shape. It’s been tough for her to keep up her spirits, since every piece of news she gets about her health seems to be bad news.
But brings me to the other thing that you can depend on in hospitals: cheerful, energetic hospital nurses. Seriously, I don’t know how these nurses do it. The young woman who was taking care of my mother-in-law yesterday was working a sixteen-hour shift and yet, she remained upbeat and smiling the whole time I was there. This afternoon, the nurse on duty bounced into the room as if she was coming to a party, smiling and chattering with my mother-in-law as she checked her vital signs. That’s been my experience with nurses: in addition to doing their jobs, they bring such positive energy into the room. I am so grateful for their presence.
18 comments:
De-lurking to let you know that I will be thinking of you, your family and your mother-in-law.
May the nurses keep bringing positive energy.....
oh, your post almost made me cry. I know you're worried, but you too, like one of those nurses, tried to keep the post bright and upbeat.
And just last weekend I got to see and talk to my friend who was a nurse for a few years -- one of those upbeat nurses that patients loved so much that they would sneak money into a card or find her address and mail her money. She was crying because she can no longer be a nurse -- she has this rare and complicated disease and she's been given a maximum of 5 years to live. So I feel like crying thinking about the upbeat nurses you talk about and my friend, who is still pretty young, probably in her 50s -- with her first baby grandson that was born late last year. Sigh...
I'm sorry and I hope that the nurses can make a difference in your MIL and you and your family's lives in this difficult moment.
P.S. for a minute there I thought it was your mom and I was a bit confused and sad, bit it's your MIL (I remember that you mentioned visiting her before, so I know she hasn't been doing too well).
I'm sorry to hear about your mother-in-law and hope her condition improves soon. You're completely right about nurses: they're angels on earth.
I wish your Mother in Law as swift a recovery as possible. My thoughts are with you and your family; take good care, please.
here's hoping for a swift healing.
Sending healing thoughts.
I know what you mean -- and I hope your MIL feels better soon.
Sending healing thoughts your way. I saw you tweeted about hospital cafeterias the other day and I wondered what was up. Broken hips can be worrisome.
Hopes for a calm healing time.
YANKEE T
Sorry this is happening--sending love to you all.
Love to you all, jo(e). ♥♥
God bless nurses.
Sending strength your way!
Sorry to hear about your MIL. And agree with you about nurses.
Thanks for the prayers, kind words, and good thoughts. It's been a long week.
Blessings on you all- I'm coming late to the post, but praying nonetheless for your MIL, and you all.
Way behind here, but hope she is doing better.
What Martha said.
And good luck dealing with the hospital. My secret to coping is to bring books, because if you don't, you'll either end up reading scary medical posters, or enduring whatever stupid news program is blaring on the waiting room tvs.
Yeah, nurses are awesome. I don't think we've ever had a negative nurse experience in all of our hospital/clinic interactions!
The Children's Hospital has yummy choices in the cafeteria...Chik-Fil-A, Subway, Starbucks, and a pizza/pasta place. Pretty decent choices if you are stuck there!
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