Being Witness to a Miracle and Happy Ending - Contemporary Nurse: Healthcare Across the Lifespan

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Being Witness to a Miracle and Happy Ending: Finally meeting Joshua

Hila J Spear
Professor of Nursing, Director, Graduate Studies, Liberty University, Lynchburg VA, United States of America

PP: 297

Keywords

nursing, childbirth, support, caring, obstetrics, neonatal

Article Text

Of the many experiences I've had over the past 30 years of practice, one that I will always remember and especially cherish is when I was the labor and delivery nurse for Mrs Hamilton. Throughout Mrs Hamilton's childbirth experience and brief hospital stay, we developed what turned into a very special and enduring bond. I provided her nursing care during most of her labor and attended the birth of her baby boy who suffered a serious nuchal cord injury. Despite a grim prognosis, to the amazement of everyone, Baby Joshua's condition progressively improved and within about a week and a half he was discharged to go home. We were hopeful for continued health and a positive future.

Remarkably, almost 20 years after Joshua's birth, I received a telephone call from Mrs Hamilton. She called to tell me that her son was doing well; Joshua had grown into an exceptional, strong and gifted young man. In a voice filled with gratitude, she stated that she and her family would never forget the part I played in his life so many years ago. What an incredible and humbling experience it was to hear from Mrs Hamilton. Her heartwarming phone call inspired me to write about and submit Joshua's birth story for publication. Mrs Hamilton enthusiastically agreed that the story needed to be shared. She contacted Joshua, who lived out of state with his lovely wife, and he readily gave permission to tell others of his traumatic birth and miraculous recovery. Another chapter of this story began with a wedding invitation.

Close to two years after the article about Joshua was published (Spear 2002a), I was invited to attend the wedding of one of my senior nursing students. It's not unusual to receive wedding invitations from students, but this bride-to-be informed me that she was engaged to marry Joshua's younger brother. She went on to tell me that Joshua's mother had told her about the unique connection that I had with the family, and said that she had read his story. Of course I was pleased to be invited to the wedding and was excited about the opportunity to meet a now grown-up Joshua face-to-face.

As the wedding ceremony began, my eyes began to tear as Joshua entered the beautifully appointed candlelit hall. Other than a photograph, it was the first time that I had seen Joshua since he was an infant. It was a very intense, visceral experience; I could feel my heart beating faster and was almost overwhelmed with emotion. My throat tightened and I had to take a few deep breaths to maintain my composure. Immediately I was transported back in time to the life and death situation of his complicated birth. I could visualize myself getting ready to place the tiny ambu-bag over his face just as the neonatal nurses entered the delivery room. They took over and soon whisked him away to the neonatal intensive care unit. I remembered those anxious initial days after he was born and how thankful we were for his quick and amazing recovery. Then, in an almost fast-forward mode, I focused in on Joshua's smiling face before me as he stood next to his brother. I thought about how awesome it was to see him as a vibrant, healthy adult and reflected on the honor of being one of the first persons to touch and care for him during the first few minutes of his life.

We met and had the opportunity to talk briefly at the wedding reception. Joshua shook my hand and thanked me for all that I had done when I was his nurse. He said that his mother had told him all about her childbirth experience and his difficult birth. I responded by telling him that it was hard to adequately describe how wonderful it was to see him and expressed that it had been my privilege to be the nurse who provided care for him and his mother so long ago. To me, this story illustrates and celebrates what nursing is all about. Being a nurse is about having the opportunity to make a difference in the lives of our patients as they in turn touch our own.

Sometimes it seems that phrases like 'making a difference' and 'touching lives' are overused, but when it comes to nursing, I think that they are fitting expressions. Nursing is a profession like no other. Every day throughout the world nurses across specialties minister to the complex physical, psychosocial and emotional needs of those entrusted to their care. Nurses are present when newborns voice their first cries and are privileged to render support and comfort to dying patients during the last moments of life. We all have stories that reveal the essence of nursing and demonstrate how nurses provide individuals, families and communities with invaluable health care throughout the lifespan. Indeed, as advocated by Hudson (2002), we need to celebrate the complexity and diversity of nursing.

'Nurses themselves can empower and encourage their colleagues as well as inspire others to become nurses by celebrating the humanness and reality of nursing through stories of practice' (Spear 2002b, p.33). I continue to share this memorable story about Joshua with students as I emphasize that you never know what lasting impact you might have on a particular patient or family. I also tell them that sometimes nurses can witness miracles and happy endings.

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