I am currently 26 weeks pregnant with my second baby. My husband and I experienced a loss at 22 weeks at St. Joe’s last year. This pregnancy has come with what has felt like even more risks and anxiety. At around 25 weeks gestation, I started going into preterm labor. I was transferred over to St Joe's as they have a level 4 NICU with the ability to take care of my baby if she delivered early. We had a 5-day stay at the hospital while they did what they could to stop my labor. I had Michelle as my nurse for the last 2 days of my stay. When she walked in, I immediately thought she was a resident. She was very well educated about the specifics of my case as well as typical treatment courses. She went above and beyond to help make sure I understood what was happening and what our goals and plans were for my care. She made an extreme effort to round with the attending and residents (she seemed to be the only nurse to do so during my stay). Michelle made sure to follow up with me after rounds to really go over any questions that might’ve come to me after the doctor left and to make sure we were all on the same page. My experience with Michelle was less like she was a nurse there to administer medicine and keep me comfortable, and more like I had an advocate in the room and someone alongside me to fight for the same goal—a healthy baby and a safe mama. 

On top of all of that, she went above and beyond to keep me comfortable. She was the first nurse to listen to my lungs during my entire stay, and found that my asthma, in combination with reduced activity and pregnancy, was really affecting my lung capacity. She made sure to get me practicing deep breaths. I told her how important my hydration was for me to help prevent Braxton hicks, and she was in to check on my water level every 2 hours, max. The very first day I had her as my nurse, she got me transferred to a different room because mine had gone from very cold to very hot. She advocated for me to get moved into the cooler room without me having to request it. I am grateful beyond words for the care I received from Michelle during my stay.