Conversations with Dr. K

emerging from one's comfort zone

2011-07-27T11:39:00.001-07:00

Right now, July 27, my youngest daughter and her 13 year old son are pedaling a tandem bike across Iowa as a fundraiser for research on Parkinson's Disease. The organization is called Pedaling for Parkinsons. They will be camping every night, setting up their own tents and sharing very primitive conditions. She felt challenged, ready, prepared, but still a bit nervous as neither her nor her son have ever biked more than 25 miles. Today they planned on doing 50 miles, but can change their destination every morning if the weather forecast is not favorable. Once the decision is made, however, they can't change it for that day because they meet up with their gear only at the specified destination.

In order to do this, Liz had to emerge from her Comfort Zone (her own home), the presence of which helped her get mentally ready. Her place of employment also had to be a Comfort Zone in order for her to be motivated to attempt the challenges this week will bring. She knows she will experience temporary discomforts, but her strength to do so emerged from these two Comfort Zones. And she knows she will be able to return to her Comfort Zones when this challenge is completed. And she and her son will feel very good about what they have accomplished.

May your homes, and your workplaces, be your Comfort Zones, so that when the going gets tough (and we all know it will, quickly) you will be ready to rise to the challenges. And, please do all that YOU can do to make your workplace a Comfort Zone for your staff. You will all be more productive and energized for your individual efforts to provide comfort.

True Comfort

2011-07-13T02:55:00.001-07:00

Regarding the post below, I have been reading The Book Thief by Markus Zusak when I came across this sentence: "The sound of another student struggling in the hallway was not particularly enjoyable, but the fact that it was someone else was, if not a true comfort, a relief." (p. 88). This statement was remarkable to me, in that it pointed to what I have been saying for 15 years: relief from discomfort is only one part of "true comfort."

Now consider this sentence from the same book. "Liesel was on the lookout for discarded items that might be valuable to a dying man. She wondered at first why it mattered so much. How could something so seemingly insignificant give comfort to someone? A ribbon in a gutter, A pinecone on the street.....A flat, round stone from the river. If nothing else, it showed that she cared..."

Do nurses realize how much it means to a scared or lonely patient, to know that a nurse cares about him or her? This type of caring is not only in the existential sense, it is made manifest by concrete symbols, words of comfort, and thoughtful actions especially for that patient and/or the family. The art of nursing......

True Comfort

2011-07-12T14:06:00.000-07:00

What is true comfort? Here I am on the beach: relief from heat, ease from worry, transcendence from nature......ahhhh, true comfort in all four contexts.

What Treatment Is Administered by Ear?

2011-06-20T08:37:00.000-07:00

The following is a powerful quote about comfort that I found in a current best- seller, Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese. The story is primarily about family, lost and found, and what the biological father (Dr. Stone) passes on as his legacy. The fictional letter that is quoted by the esteemed Dr. Stone to a hospital team was sent by a parent and written to Dr. Stone (he was stone-cold in many instances in the novel), but in this legacy a vision for sick-care that Dr. Stone wishes for in the future is revealed:

“Dr. Stone – My son’s terrible death is not something I will ever get over, but perhaps in time it will be less painful. But I cannot get over one image, a last image that could have been different. Before I was asked to leave the room in a very rought manner, I must tell you that I saw my son was terrified and there was no one who addressed his fear. The only person who tried was a nurse. She held my son’s hand and said, ‘Don’t worry, it will be all right.’ Everyone else ignored him. Sure, the doctors were busy with his body. It would have been merciful if he had been unconscious. They had important things to do. They cared only about his chest and belly. Not about the little boy who was in fear….I saw no sign of the slightest bit of human kindness. My son and I were irritants. Your team would have preferred for me to be gone and for him to be quiet. Eventually they got their wish. Dr. Stone, as head of surgery, perhaps as a parent yourself, do you not feel some obligation to have your staff comfort the patient? Would the patient not be better off with less anxiety, less fright? My son’s last conscious memory will be of people ignoring him. My last memory of him will be of my little boy, watching in terror as his mother is escorted out of the room. It is the graven image I will carry to my own deathbed. The fact that people were attentive to his body does not compensate for their ignoring his being.”

After reading this letter out loud to his staff…”Stone stood there, silent, looking out, as if considering the letter’s context himself, unaware of his audience. No one spoke.

As the moment stretched on, even the smallest noises were stilled until there was only the hum of the air-conditioning. Thomas Stone’s expression was reflective, certainly not angry. Now, as if waking up, he searched the room for a reaction, seeing if the writer struck a chord. The scoffers had reconsidered their position.

When Stone finally spoke, he asked a question, ‘What treatment in an emergency is administered by ear?” (meaning intuitively).

The author states, “I knew the answer from reading his book…I met my father’s gaze and I did not blink. ‘Words of comfort.’

‘Thank you,’ he said, his voice altered. ‘Words of comfort.”

I have thought about this passage many times – but now I would like YOU to think about it. What lessons do you draw from it? And just remember, NOW we don’t have to administer comfort “by ear.” We have a scientifically based pattern for care that, if practiced, assures no family or patient will experience what is so poignantly described above.

Your thoughts? Oh, and by the way, I highly recommend that YOU read this book too – just for pleasure.

Refs: Verghese, A. (2009). Cutting for Stone. Vintage Books, Random House, Inc. NY, NY

Photo from The Art of Nursing (1st ed). Edited by P. Donahue

New Blog

2011-06-18T14:23:00.001-07:00

Opening up the new blog for ComfortLine.com