performing an original monologue here is
Kelly Johnson Miss Colorado
every nurse has a patient that reminded
them why they became a nurse in the
first place
mine was Joe Joe was in the beginning
stages of Alzheimer's
he had moments within moments without
his memory but the hardest part about
the aging condition for Joe were his
night terrors he would wake up in the
middle of the night screaming absolute
bloody murder but if I just went in
there and held his hand for a few
moments like if usually getting to calm
down but then he wanted to talk he would
ask me if I could change his treatments
and I'd say no Joe I can't and just a
nurse well what about my medication can
he fix those and I'd say no Joe I can't
and just a nurse but because I couldn't
do those things for Joe we connected on
other levels he would ask me about
volleyball we would talk about his
grandbabies and he would tease me about
being the only nurse on the unit that
can reach the gods on the top shelf it
was a lot of laps with Joe but then one
night everything changed I found him in
his room crying and I went over to him
and I lifted his head up out of his
hands and I said Joe I know that this is
really hard but you are not defined by
this disease you are not just
Alzheimer's
you are still Joe and he looked right
back at me almost Phillip grooming that
nurse telling them the same goes for you
although you say it all the time you are
not just a nurse you are minors and you
have changed my life because you've
cared about me and that's when it hit me
patients are people with family and
friends and I don't want to be a nurse
that ever pretends because you are not a
room number and a diagnosis mayor in the
hospital you're a person very first and
Joe reminded me that day that I'm a
lifesaver
I'm never going to be Justin