A Beebe Believer again and again

No one wants to be sick, to be rushed to the hospital, to face the unknown. Everyone wants TLC and a clear path to good health. I found that at Beebe, and I am a Beebe Believer!

There were so many individuals at Beebe Healthcare who touched my life while I went through procedure after procedure, two surgeries and endless x-rays, and rather than go into lengthy details, I think it’s important to recognize those people who were there for me day in and day out.

If you have never been confined to a hospital bed and hooked up to any variety of machines, you may not fully understand, but trust me, the clock ticks very slowly and your mind wanders to places you don’t really want to be.

Beebe Healthcare has a grassroots mission of quality care that is all about the patient having comfort, feeling well cared for and healing. My transition from fearing the future to the excitement of growing stronger and better took a fleet of Beebe care professionals that worked seamlessly and continuously. It truly does take a village! 

I first need to praise my wonderful surgeon Dr. Mudiwa Munyikwa, my general practioner Dr. Karen McGibbon from Beebe Family Practice Millville, and the fine senior leadership of the hospital for their diligence in finding such high-level health professionals.

A huge thank you and appreciation of support to Jody Barbarulo, patient advocate, for being there every day to visit, bringing her great smile and words of encouragement; and Catherine Walls, Patient Experience program coordinator, for the continued hellos and offers to get me anything I was missing. The time goes very slowly in a hospital bed, and these caring individuals were such a bright spot. Jody, you single-handedly got me through many days.

The nursing staff makes hourly patient rounds, and gets to know their patients and their needs. All the nurses who assisted me gave me good care and lived up to the high Beebe standards. There are a few I need to mention by name and thank individually for the above and beyond the call of duty care they gave me. They all did it with such ease, I know it is their standard.

Nurse Melissa Floyd cared for me during both of my visits as a patient to the third floor. Melissa works nights to coordinate her schedule at home with her family. When Melissa was assigned to me, I knew I would be in great hands. Along with her quiet, thoughtful way, she always had such a great attitude, and her skills were top-notch.

One night Melissa was not assigned to me; she was the charge nurse for the shift. She could have used her break to put up her feet and relax. Instead, Melissa came to see if I wanted to go for a walk since she knew that it was important to me and helped me sleep better. I would prefer to never be a patient again, but if I am, I certainly hope to have Melissa’s care.

The following nurses left me with many similar wonderful stories to mention, but suffice it to say they all went above and beyond, and have left a lifelong impression: 

Michelle Turin, who got the dirty end of the stick so often with the evening shift. You are a saint, Michelle! Amanda Rogers, who took the extra time to explain and investigate, and make me see the bright side. You remind me of my mother in that way – the height of a compliment! Libby Rendall, who always seemed to be there at my darkest moments and found a way to turn them around. She has a good heart and mind, and the valuable ability to look outside the box while adhering to every procedure.

All the CNAs are taught to add comfort, anticipate need, and be forever diligent. Thank you all! A particular shout-out to Cathy Bugeda for all the baths, shampoos and most of all, the miles of walks you took with me.

My hat goes off to the entire Beebe family: the receptionist in the emergency room, x-ray technicians, transport team, the hospitalists (I could write another whole article on them!), each and every RN and CNA, the food service and cleaning staff, the visiting clergy, trained visiting dogs and their caregivers. Thank you all for being the strong team that got me through my frightening health issues and on to the road to good health.

My wonderful husband and I give to Beebe Healthcare, and we now serve on the hospital’s Patient Family Advisory Council as well. It is indeed an honor to support such compassionate individuals. I will forever be grateful.

The Beebe family thanks Sally Cohen for sharing her story and making a wonderful gift to honor and support everyone who provided her care. For more information about the Beebe Medical Foundation’s Celebrate Excellent Care program and how you can honor a Beebe team member and support Beebe Healthcare, our local nonprofit community healthcare system, go to www.beebemedicalfoundation.org/cec.