1045 March 6, 2010 Haitian Emergency Room. Port Au Prince.
Working in the ER when 2 men came running in with a young boy dressed in a uniform. Gunshot wound--that's all we knew. He was limp. Everyone began working on him, cutting off his shirt, starting IV's, taking VS. He was going in to shock. His 02 sat was low, blood pressure decreasing, heart rate sky high. We've got to get him in to surgery. At one point he opened his eyes and tried to sit up. Maybe he really didn't get shot and is fine. No, he's not fine. He struggled while we were putting his IV in. Go find a surgeon. There was a surgeon ready to do surgery. Family must go find someone to donate B+ blood. They went quickly. We rushed the patient to the OR and at this time were giving him respirations. He still had a faint pulse. I was praying that God would save his life and that the family would bring blood soon.
The gun shot went in his left front upper quadrant and out of his back right lower quadrant. It went through part of his lung, kidney, liver, and intestines. He was a security personnel and, as I found out later, had been playing around with one of his friends when shot.
One nurse was bagging the patient and I helped with other tasks such as hanging IV fluids, running errands, and taking notes. "He's not going to make it", sounded about. I kept praying. They put a chest tube in him. Two surgeons cut open his abdomen to drain the accumulated blood and find the bullet. The other nurse asked me, "Are you going to be ok? He's not going to make it." I nodded. Tears welled up in my eyes. They continued to fight for his life. In my short nursing experience I had not yet had a patient die. I know it's part of being in the medical profession. Death should never be easy, though.
Was this young man ready to die? Did he know Jesus? Prayers were running through my head. My last documentation for this patient: 1203 Dead.
6 comments:
Oh Shama, I can't imagine... I'm glad you were there with him.
:(
Heart-breaking. You did what you could. I can't wait until Death itself shall die.
I love you Shama. Thank you for caring. For giving. For living His love. Big Hug :)
My dear friend and caring nurse, I hope you never lose touch with the preciousness of life. I have been a nurse for almost 29 years and I still feel deeply when a patient dies. Tuesday during report to the oncoming night shift, my patient, only 50 years old, breathed her last. I cried with the fiance and brother. Praise God that we have hope of heaven and a God who fills us with his peace when there is sadness and tears. Be strong in Him!! Lisa
It is so sad when this happens. I'm sorry you had to be there, but I'm glad you were able to pray for him and be with him in a way that others may not have been able to. You are a blessing
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