Tag: covid-19

A Different Perspective

Walking through these halls, you have absolutely no idea
Exactly what you will encounter after each corner you turn
You know, one split second will turn it all upside down
And in a blink of an eye, your perspective will never be the same
A different perspective

Over the last few years, many stories have been shared
Each chapter played out in unexpected, unscripted dramas
If you didn’t know any better, none of this would be true
Your experience tells you, that every second is all too real
A different perspective

Standing by the trauma bay, you watch it unfold, a story all too common
In a matter of seconds, the patient arrives, having been shot multiple times
Trauma Attendings on both sides and ED Doctors at the head
If they do the impossible, this patient might actually survive
Days later, the chaplain sits at bedside, as this miracle talks about his faith
A different perspective

Family called and requested prayer as their patriarch with covid, was to be intubated
After they talked and prayed together the chaplain held the patient’s hand through his sedation
The chaplain called family and shared the visit; with gratitude they cried “how did he look?”
That prayer was the last he ever heard and “amen” was the last word he ever said.
A different perspective

Making rounds on the units, to check on the staff with intentionality
On one side of the unit, the chaplain comforts a nurse through tears
After family expressed their emotions in unfortunate, belligerent ways
On the other side of the unit, a family embraces a nurse with gratitude
As they expressed their appreciation for taking care of one of their own
A different perspective

You’re paged to the MICU for a covid patient that is about to pass
Due to visitor restrictions, two family members watch from outside of the room
The chaplain stands beside them, providing a gentle touch and sacred silence
The nurse strokes his forehead and respiratory cradles his hand, as the last breath is taken
A different perspective

A driver, with full term pregnancy, arrived, after having been in a car collision
ED Team, Trauma Team, OB Team, and one chaplain; 46 people already there
This child had seconds to be delivered but mother requested prayer before entry
An understanding scalpel paused; a prayer was said and this precious one was finally free
A different perspective

When you walk around, you’ll measure this and quantify that
Take a moment to see what is happening around you
It’s always good to look at things from a different point of view
In a matter of seconds, your perspective may never be the same
A different perspective


(c) April, 2022

Covid is Real

Covid is real.

I have seen it firsthand. It is horrific. It is heartbreaking. It is isolating. It is real. It is a pandemic.

Patients are overflowing the hospitals. Families cannot be at bedside. Teams are short-staffed. Health care workers are burned out. Front line providers are suffering from compassion fatigue.

Covid is real.

Nurses, doctors, and their families have been quarantined because they had covid.

Respiratory departments were almost half-staff because an entire team was hit with the virus.

An environmental service employee cried as she shared about her near death experience with Covid with fear trembling in her voice.

Hundreds of staff members have to be tested after they came in contact with patients who didn’t know they were positive.

Departments have lost colleagues because Covid took them too soon.

Colleagues have lost family members to the darkness of this pandemic.

Covid is real.

When I stood outside a patient’s room, to support her family. They stared into the room, lost in their anger and grief. They not only grieved the death of their mother but also their loss of not being able to touch her, hold her hand, or kiss her goodbye.

Covid is real. 

When I talked to his wife on the phone after I visited her husband in the Covid ICU. She asked a question, grasping for any glimpse of hope, “How does he look?” She knew he struggled with his breathing and would require intubation if it didn’t improve. That night he was intubated and never made it home.

Covid is real. 

When I held the hand of a nurse and prayed at his bedside. He was on the covid unit, not as a nurse but as a patient. I held his hand as he struggled to breathe. Just like every other nurse, he was caring for others, who were struggling with the same pain. Just like every other nurse, he sacrificed his health to continue to serve in his role. Just like every other nurse, he returned back to work to continue his calling.

Covid is real.

When I received my positive test result on Christmas Eve after being symptomatic. I was quarantined at home, alone, for ten days and stayed home to recover for another seven.  I had a mild case and am still dealing with remnants of that impact. Given what I witnessed in the deaths and grief of many, I was blessed with a mild case of this reality. 

Given what I witnessed standing with two sons, who stood outside their dad’s room, as their dad took his last breath. I was honored to watch the Respiratory Therapist and the Nurse, held their dad’s hands for comfort and propped up the tablet as his wife talked to him on the video..I was blessed with a mild case of this reality.

Covid is real.

When I returned to work and two days later, sat at a patient’s bedside, holding his hand. He had tested positive for Covid and was mourning the loss of his wife. She died of Covid less than 24 hours ago and he was not able to be there with her. 

Covid is real.

And if you think it’s a hoax, a prank, or some conspiracy theory; you are painfully wrong. You and your family may not have been impacted by the Corona virus (thus far) but you have clearly been impacted by something worse……a loss that is beyond my level of understanding. 

What I do understand is this……

Covid is real.

And may you never find out just how real it is.