Carly Dunn
April 2025
Carly
Dunn
,
RN
2E CV ICU
WakeMed Health & Hospitals
Raleigh
,
NC
United States
Carly advocated for my Pa and stood behind me.
My grandpa went into WakeMed for a stent placement in his left carotid artery. Going in that morning at 0530, neither my family nor I knew what we would go through over the next two weeks. Upon starting my grandpa's procedure, the doctor and her team realized they would need to switch over from a TCAR to a CEA. The doctor and her team did a fantastic job at quickly switching over and updating me.
The surgery itself went great, but in PACU anesthesia, I promptly realized something wasn't right when my Pa was difficult to wake and unable to move his right side. The team reintubated my Pa and got him to CT, where a code stroke was called. The doctor updated me on my Pa's findings before the code stroke and updated me in person frequently. My Pa later went to CVICU. That first day was a blur, marked by considerable uncertainty. All we could do was wait and see if my Pa would wake up.
The next day involved another CT scan, and there was much uncertainty regarding the test results. The CT scan from the previous day showed no new signs of stroke, but the one on the second day did. My Pa had suffered multiple strokes on both sides of his brain. Most everyone on the team was not optimistic about my Pa's recovery being successful, and we were told they would give us as little or as much time as we wanted to see if he would wake up or have any function.
My Pa began opening his eyes. A sight I was unsure I'd ever see again. All of his notes said my Pa couldn't follow commands or didn't have purposeful movements, but he did. He responded to my brother and me. The next day, Carly took care of my Dad for the first time. She was the first nurse to witness with her own eyes what I had been saying about my Pa and how he would nod or shake his head to yes or no questions and how he could follow commands. She was amazed, much like myself, but she witnessed it. That same day, I had to speak to neurology. The neurologist had not seen what my Father could do and was discussing the next steps with me. I spoke up for my Pa, and she had a hard time believing what I was saying. Carly advocated for my Pa and stood behind me.
It was the first time in a week that I felt heard and like someone believed in what my Pa could do. We were fortunate to have Carly with us for the next two days, during which she would advocate for him and was able to get PT and OT even more involved with him on 2/7. That was the day I knew my Pa was going to defeat all the odds stacked against him, and that all truly began when Carly advocated for him and truly took the time to help him/work with him in every way that she could. My Pa is now at an LTACH facility almost a month later, but I genuinely don't think we would have ever gotten to this point had it not been for Carly. There will never be enough words of gratitude to thank her for all she did for my Pa truly. She was a ray of light in those dark and uncertain days. She was a glimmer of hope sent to us when we were lost. Carly, I can never thank you enough for the compassion and kindness you showed my Pa and my family. You're the perfect example of why we are nurses. Thank you for all you have done.
The surgery itself went great, but in PACU anesthesia, I promptly realized something wasn't right when my Pa was difficult to wake and unable to move his right side. The team reintubated my Pa and got him to CT, where a code stroke was called. The doctor updated me on my Pa's findings before the code stroke and updated me in person frequently. My Pa later went to CVICU. That first day was a blur, marked by considerable uncertainty. All we could do was wait and see if my Pa would wake up.
The next day involved another CT scan, and there was much uncertainty regarding the test results. The CT scan from the previous day showed no new signs of stroke, but the one on the second day did. My Pa had suffered multiple strokes on both sides of his brain. Most everyone on the team was not optimistic about my Pa's recovery being successful, and we were told they would give us as little or as much time as we wanted to see if he would wake up or have any function.
My Pa began opening his eyes. A sight I was unsure I'd ever see again. All of his notes said my Pa couldn't follow commands or didn't have purposeful movements, but he did. He responded to my brother and me. The next day, Carly took care of my Dad for the first time. She was the first nurse to witness with her own eyes what I had been saying about my Pa and how he would nod or shake his head to yes or no questions and how he could follow commands. She was amazed, much like myself, but she witnessed it. That same day, I had to speak to neurology. The neurologist had not seen what my Father could do and was discussing the next steps with me. I spoke up for my Pa, and she had a hard time believing what I was saying. Carly advocated for my Pa and stood behind me.
It was the first time in a week that I felt heard and like someone believed in what my Pa could do. We were fortunate to have Carly with us for the next two days, during which she would advocate for him and was able to get PT and OT even more involved with him on 2/7. That was the day I knew my Pa was going to defeat all the odds stacked against him, and that all truly began when Carly advocated for him and truly took the time to help him/work with him in every way that she could. My Pa is now at an LTACH facility almost a month later, but I genuinely don't think we would have ever gotten to this point had it not been for Carly. There will never be enough words of gratitude to thank her for all she did for my Pa truly. She was a ray of light in those dark and uncertain days. She was a glimmer of hope sent to us when we were lost. Carly, I can never thank you enough for the compassion and kindness you showed my Pa and my family. You're the perfect example of why we are nurses. Thank you for all you have done.