Thank you's - memorable ones you've received?

Gompers, BSN, RN · Jul 4, 2006

There was a baby I cared for whose mother bought his nurses (there were 5 of us who cared for him on a daily basis for the 3 months he was on the unit) tote bags to use for work. They were canvas and bought from a nursing catalog. There was an embroidered nursing design on it, and she had them all stitched with, "Thank you Nurse (name), for taking care of me! Love, (baby's name)" It was a very sweet gift and we carry them with pride.

But the best thank-you's I've ever gotten have been verbal.

One was from a now-friend of mine whose baby I cared for from the time he was 30 minutes old until he went home 4 months later. She helped me with some real estate stuff, as she's an agent, and didn't want any compensation or anything. I kept asking if there was anything at all I could do for her in return, and she finally just said, "You took care of my SON!" Just the absolute gratitude in her voice was enough to bring tears to my eyes.

Another was a mom whose baby I cared for in the hospital for five months, and then kept in touch with after he went home. He passed away from liver failure a few months after that and the last time I saw her was his funeral. One night shift, two or three YEARS later, she called me on the unit. She said it took her that long to work up the courage to call the unit and hear the word "neonatal" again. The reason for her call was that she wanted to let me know that she was doing okay, that she thought of me often, and that she could never thank me enough for how I loved and cared for her baby.

These patients are only with us for a short while. But to them and their families, the experiences they have in the hospital leave impressions that last a lifetime. ALWAYS remember that.

Liddle Noodnik · Jul 4, 2006

These patients are only with us for a short while. But to them and their families, the experiences they have in the hospital leave impressions that last a lifetime. ALWAYS remember that.

Your post gave me goosebumps AND that prickling of the eyes that makes me think I want to just BAWWWWL - thank you for posting that!

santhony44, MSN, RN, NP · Jul 4, 2006

Food is always nice:lol2:

But it's the verbal ones that really keep you going. Things like "you made a difference" will stay with you forever.

As an NP, one of the biggest compliments is when someone who works with you brings family members to see you. That's a huge vote of confidence, plus, I feel that I'm being thanked for all the care I've done no one else has thanked me for.

:balloons: :balloons: :balloons: :balloons:

Liddle Noodnik · Jul 4, 2006

Food is always nice:lol2:
But it's the verbal ones that really keep you going. Things like "you made a difference" will stay with you forever.
As an NP, one of the biggest compliments is when someone who works with you brings family members to see you. That's a huge vote of confidence, plus, I feel that I'm being thanked for all the care I've done no one else has thanked me for.
:balloons: :balloons: :balloons: :balloons:

Yes, being referred to somebody, DEFINITELY -

Altho, the foooood...... hmmmm... decisions decisions LOL

maledi · Jul 4, 2006

I am an aide and this is my story. I recently had a patient I had been helping to take care of for several months. She had cervical cancer with mets. When I first met her she had shoulder length hair that was very curly and pretty. She would constantly walk the halls with her twin sister. Her twin sister never left her side. She spent the night at the hopsital with her in the next bed. I had never seen such devotion and it broke my heart to watch this story play out. I always dreaded going into her room because it was so difficult for me to handle seeing her towards the end. (I am still trying to learn how to deal with my emotions on the job.) However, if she needed something I would walk to the moon for her.

Well, I happened to be on the last nights with her when she was on CMO. I walked into her room and her twin sister was reading her a story book. It t brought tears my eyes. As I was cleaning her up and washing her mouth out her sister said, "I bet you didn't think you'd be dealing with stuff like this, huh?" I said I knew I would but that it was so hard. I confessed to the sister that it had been very hard to take care of her sister like this. I told her that I would treat her like I would my own sister even though that fact alone made it even harder but that she deserved that from me.

Well, when I went back in later to clean her up I was rolling her over and she died in my arms. It was so hard for me and I let loose. I started crying and her sister was there with us. She gave me a big hug over the bed and told me that this was what her sister needed and that I had done a great job and that it was okay to cry. Later that night she came up to me and thanked me for treating her sister like she was someone I knew. It was very special to me when I realized that she had been taken care of in the gentlest manner and that I knew this for sure because I took care of her. Very hard situation though-one of many I will face in my career I'm sure!

Liddle Noodnik · Jul 4, 2006

Later that night she came up to me and thanked me for treating her sister like she was someone I knew. It was very special to me when I realized that she had been taken care of in the gentlest manner and that I knew this for sure because I took care of her. Very hard situation though-one of many I will face in my career I'm sure!

Oh man... that was awesome, the whole story. God bless you - you're one of the good ones :) and your patient's sister will never forget you I'm sure. I guess all three of you helped one another!

LilRedRN1973 · Jul 5, 2006

One of my first patient's to pass away had been a nurse herself. Her daughter was unable to get a flight out in time to be at the bedside. I used a cell phone to call her daughter and then put the phone to my patient's ear so her daughter could say goodbye to her mother. Although my patient was on 100's of mcg's of Neo, maxed on dopamine and vasopressin and only had a BP of 60/30, she was responsive enough to shed tears while listening to her daughter talk (patient was on a ventilator and unable to talk).

I didn't get a chance to meet the daughter then, but I attended the memorial service for my patient. Turns out, she had been a nurse in my rather small community for 40 years and was well loved by everyone. She was also a nursing instructor at my school a few years prior to me attending and she had trained my stepson's school nurse. I was fortunate enough to meet the daughter that had spoken to her mother via cell phone, we hugged and cried. I ended up saying a few words during the service and felt a weight lifted off my shoulders after learning about what a terrific lady she was and what a full life she led.

Months go by and just a few weeks ago, I find a package in my mailbox at work. I open it up to find 2 stethoscopes and a small gold chain with a gold charm on the end that says, "RN". The card inside states that it's from the patient's daughter, the stethoscopes and necklace belonged to her mother while she had been a nurse and she felt her mother would be honored for me to have them. She wore the necklace everyday of her career as a nurse. I was so touched that this woman remembered me while going through her mother's belongings. Although I have my own "RN" necklace very similar to the one given to me, I will keep hers and should my stepdaughter decide to become a nurse, I will proudly hand it over on her graduation day. If not, then someday, when I am a patient and I have an incredible, caring nurse, I will pass it down along with the story of how it came to be.

Melanie = )

maledi · Jul 5, 2006

Melanie,

that is a wonderful story. It goes to show how much you value the patient care you give and how valued it is by others. Keep up the good work!

steelcityrn, RN · Jul 5, 2006

Working in homecare you tend to receive many gifts from homemade napkin holders, pins and blankets, to gift certificates, which I always tell them they do not have to do this! But my greatest gift is always when someone remembers me for helping them months or years later and says thank you again, perhaps it is even the spouse of a patient we had.

grentea · Jul 5, 2006

One of the best thank you's I had ever received was from a patient I had who was also a nurse. Before she was discharged she said, "Thank you for your kindness and for caring about me." The fact that she was a very experienced nurse saying this really touched me because I have all of about 7 months of experience so at times I still feel kind of inadequate. I always do my best with all of my patients, and I've thought about what she said to me many times when I've been frustrated with myself for not knowing everything and not being able to work as fast as some nurses who have been around longer. I guess my patients can really tell that I care about them, and I'm still learning and getting better about my routine and that's ok. :)

prmenrs, RN · Jul 5, 2006

These stories are remarkable and the kind of thing that remind us it's not all about money, JACHO, and other irritants.

I've had many terrific thank yous. One from a baby! Mom pumping for all she was worth to keep the breast milk coming, and, altho baby would [occassionally] take a bottle, she refused to try to nurse. I sat her up one day in her incubator, face to face w/me, and gently scolded her: your mom is working so hard to feed you, and I expect you to start nursing, young lady! You don't have to do it all the time, just give her a little encouragement, ok?

Set mom (she had watched all this over my shoulder, sort of giggling) and baby up Kangaroo style behind the screen, went on to the next customer. I heard this little call from mom: "SHE'S DOING IT!!!" Sure enough, she's suckling like a pro.

Probably I got lucky timing wise, it was just time to do it, and she did. But mom was convinced I had "talked her into it".

Felt good, too!