Death
First Losses
A couple of weeks ago I lost my first patients. Since I started working as an ER nurse I have seen patients die, and been part of that event, as in the case of The Vigil, but this was the first time that the patients I lost my were my own.
The Vigil
Two nights ago we had a patient pass away in our ER. There's nothing unusual about this. What made this case worth mentioning is the manner in which the events transpired and the lessons about human frailty that are embedded in it.
The patient was 56 year old female in the terminal stages of pancreatic cancer. She had been diagnosed 3 months prior and her family had made the decision in the last month to place her on hospice. She had home hospice nurses who would come to see her, and the family knew the end was near.
Privacy/HIPAA Disclaimer
The cases and persons that are described in these pages are composites, none representing any one particular patient, person, or case. While the medical facts are all true and accurate, I have edited and doctored and composited enough that none of the personal descriptions, family settings, or any other distinguishing features are representative of any real actual person. In other words, I am not violating any HIPAA laws and regulations on this website, and the privacy of all my patients is completely protected. Any resemblance to any living person is completely accidental and unintentional.
