Peace of mind

Abstract

Nancy J. Girard, RN About a year ago, a nurse friend (whom I will call Daisy for this story) underwent a major surgical procedure. As nurses do, she enlisted support and information from her nurse friends. It was a surgical procedure, so she called me. I gave her my opinion of several surgeons I thought were excellent for her procedure, one of whom had been suggested by her primary care physician. She then asked if I knew anyone in the OR where she was scheduled for the procedure. I told her I would call an AORN friend at that location and alert her that Daisy was coming because she was facing a surgery that would affect the rest of her life. Although Daisy had been in health care her entire career, this was happening to her as a person, and she was apprehensive about the impending surgery. I called my contact in the OR, informed her about the situation, and shared some other information Daisy said I could share to help them plan her surgery. The OR director assured me that my friend would have the best of care, and I did not doubt it for a minute. The surgery went well, and my friend had an uneventful recovery. I promptly forgot about the episode. A few days ago, and a year after her surgery, Daisy appeared in my office. We talked for awhile, and then she said she wanted to thank me for giving her peace of mind when she had her surgery. She went on to tell me that I would never know how much that meant to her and how wonderful the nurses in the OR had been. She said that a nurse's perspective is totally changed when he or she becomes the patient. The perioperative nurses caring for Daisy were professional, caring, and compassionate. The irony of this was that Daisy is not a perioperative nurse, and for years, we had had an ongoing debate about the necessity of having RNs in the OR. Her past opinion was that professional nursing was not done in the OR, and if RNs were there, they quickly became technicians. After her experience, however, she completely changed her mind. She apologized to me for the years during which she told nursing students not to choose perioperative nursing as a career, because she now knows that professional nurses are essential in the OR. As a patient, she cherished the peace of mind that came from knowing an RN was in the room with her at all times, protecting her, and coordinating her care. It was the little things Daisy remembered the most. She assumed, as all patients do, that everyone in the room was competent. What she needed at the time was recognition that she still was a person and a human being under that thin sheet. The things she appreciated were people making eye contact with her—really looking at her when they talked to her. She liked the calm touch on her shoulder, the application of a warm blanket without having to ask for it, and that someone made sure her feet were covered because that was the coldest part of her. She also appreciated the continual gentleness and the message that she never would be alone. This all was done by wonderful perioperative nurses, and this is what gave Daisy peace of mind. In her stressed condition, she reasoned that if the little things were being attended to, then surely the big things would be done correctly. We as perioperative nurses go from day to day, making sure we are competent and skilled in the technology needed. We sometimes forget these little things and get caught up in preparations. Perhaps Daisy got exceptional care because I called the hospital, because she was a nurse, or simply because the perioperative nurses at that location are great with every patient. I prefer to think it was the latter and that they always give quality care. Perioperative nurses are important to the patient. They do give professional nursing care. Most importantly, they give assurance to their patients daily, and that should be an unwritten goal. Tell your patients today that you are their nurse and you will take care of them, so they too can have peace of mind about their surgical procedure.