Portraits in Nursing - Kaiser permanente

[music] Nursing is something very special to me. It means taking care of people. [baby crying] I've been doing this for eight years, and there are so many times where I still get teary-eyed hearing that first baby cry. It's life, you know, in your hands. And being able to experience that almost on a daily basis, you can't compare that. A lot of kids are apprehensive about their vaccines, and so I try to calm them down by just talking to them and before you know it, I'm done. I see the work that I do is helping children to be well. In pediatric oncology, children come through on and off for treatment over a few years, so we get to know the child and their family really well. The outcomes are improving daily. In my time, I have seen the success rate increase. Sometimes it can be really devastating, but it's such an honor to be part of that family when they're going through that journey with their child. It's an extreme privilege. [music] When you're getting a patient ready for surgery, there's definitely a timeline, but you still get to spend a decent amount of time at their bedside. I enjoy taking care of my patients. It brings me great pride to know that people trust me, and they know that I'm going to do everything I can to make sure that they're safe and that they have a good experience. I'm a CRNA, or certified registered nurse anesthetist. We work in conjunction with a physician to provide anesthesia services. I take patients to a point of unconsciousness, monitor their vital signs, keep them healthy and keep them pain free, so by the time surgery's over. they wake up comfortable and happy. A lot of people will look at what I do and think, wow, nurses do that? Yes we do! [music] The goal of what I do here is to help promote people's quality and quantity of life. Making sure that people get to their doctor's appointments, do their labs so that we can track how well they're doing, that they're taking their medications correctly. I love what I do. Having the opportunity to help people who might otherwise not get this type of help and being on a long journey with them over time is very, very gratifying. I find being a hospice nurse profoundly enlightening. My patients offer me so much, and then I want to give to them in return. Every visit, I'm assessing if their symptoms like pain or shortness of breath are controlled or managed. I offer them instructions and guidance and comfort, emotional support, and they give me wisdom. I feel when I leave, okay, you've done good. Today was a good day; you did good. [music] I think what drew me to the ICU was the adrenaline. We care for the sickest patients. Your job is to move as fast as you can to get them back to their optimal level as quick as possible. I don't call it work. I call it helping people. I call it an opportunity to make a difference. I really believe that. Here in acute rehab, we take care of the spinal cord patients that just came out of surgery, as well as someone with a traumatic brain injury from a car accident, or just came from the emergency room from having a stroke. Our goal is to assist the patient and the family on being able to take care of themselves, and hopefully discharge them to the community and be as independent as possible. What we do here really makes a difference in someone's life. Med Surg nursing is very busy, but if a nurse can sit down, hold a patient's hand, talk to them, it comforts them. It can relieve them of their stress, their pain. It's not just giving them medications; it's sharing a little bit of myself with them. They might not remember my name, but I hope they remember how I took care of them. [music]