"Angels" lend support, encouragement to new mother
For obstetrical nurses Diane Leeder, R.N., and Christa Profaca, R.N., it was
just another day shift last October in the Mills-Peninsula Family Birth
Center.
For Kari Loeser, a health care compliance attorney at Genentech
in South San Francisco, it was the day as she labored to give birth to her first
child, daughter Sydney.
Kari was starting to think that perhaps she
wouldn’t be able to deliver without surgery when the nurses joined
Mills-Peninsula OB-GYN doctor, Rebecca Dupont, M.D., in her room.
“Diane
said ‘We need to get some sun in here’ and opened the curtains,” recalls Kari,
who lives in Foster City.
“Then they put me through almost yoga-like
poses. Their years of experience showed as they helped me focus, and Sydney was
born.”
Christa, who has worked in labor and delivery for the past eight
years, said the credit really belongs to Kari.
“Basically, when women
trust us, they’re willing to do what they need to do,” she said. “They are the
ones who inspire me.”
Kari said she was pleased to find out that she
could congratulate Diane, Christa and Dr. Dupont for their “support,
encouragement and dedication” through the Guardian Angel recognition
program.
“It seems like a great program,” she said. “Y
outstanding service, and you also make a charitable gift supporting the
hospital.”
Leslie Schemel, director of Stewardship Services for the
Mills-Peninsula Hospital Foundation, said the new program was started last
October.
“In addition to relaying a patient’s kind words, the Guardian
Angel form provides the option of honoring a nurse, lab technician, volunteer,
physician or other caregiver with a gift that will be reinvested in the care
they provide,” she explained.
Recent patients are invited to honor their
caregiver. Their Guardian Angel receives a card with the patient’s message as
well as a custom-crafted lapel pin.
Diane and Christa both say that as
nice as it is to hear from patients, it’s not why they do what they
do.
“I love being able to be a part of something that’s a milestone in
anyone’s life,” says Diane, who has more than 20 years experience as a labor and
delivery nurse. “You also work as a team in unison. Birthing is a spiritual
journey.”
Christa, who was inspired to become a nurse by the treatment
she received when her son was born 20 years ago, said she’s moved by the fact
that women are inspired to honor their caregiver at such a busy time in their
lives.
“It really touches us,” she said.
Diane agrees.
“It
feels good to be honored. But we do our work because we love it,” she
said.
