Going the Extra Mile




 

 


By Nancy Hendrickson, RN
3N Charge Nurse

While I was working in OB, I met a couple having trouble conceiving. After they finally did, they, sadly, lost the baby. They tried again, and were successful. But once again, they lost the baby. They became pregnant a third time, and delivered a full term baby, who was born with biliary atresia, which is a congenital absence or closure of the ducts that drain bile from the liver. Because of this condition, the hospital bills were mounting as they waited for a liver transplant for their infant. The OB Department along with other employees got together and organized an auction and dance to raise money. We got donations from local merchants for the auction. And not only that, but two insurance companies said they would match our funds. We raised a total of $6,000.00! The baby had the transplant and lived until she was 3 years old. Words cannot express the gratitude of the family. Through all this, we became personal friends. They now have three other healthy children. And when I run into them around town, they always tell me how grateful they are for everything we did for them and their little girl. And after all this time, we still exchange Christmas cards. In all my 31 years of nursing, I have never had such an experience.


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