Hali was my overnight nurse on my second full night of labor. The induction medication was not moving along quickly, and I had already been dilated 4 cm for a good 5 hours with no progress. She did everything she could think of to try to help move things along. She patiently explained, each half hour, what position we were going to try next and why it might help my baby move down and help with dilation. Her attitude was amazing, and she always checked to make sure each position was comfortable enough for me to rest between positions. After 6 hours and several cervical checks, she started breaking out some more complicated positions just in case they might help. At the last cervical check before the nurse switch, I had progressed a full cm! She seemed just as excited as my husband and I were. When she came to introduce my next nurse, she asked if she could give me a hug and wanted to know if it was OK to come see the baby the next night since she would be working again. Of course, we said yes!

Unfortunately, our daughter was born with the umbilical cord around her neck twice at 4:41 pm and had to be immediately transferred to a different children’s hospital while I stayed at Missouri Baptist. When Hali came in that night, she requested to help me get cleaned up and ready to move to postpartum. She made sure to keep in touch with the NICU while they were waiting for the transfer unit, and since I couldn’t walk yet, had them bring my daughter by the room so I could see her for a minute before they left. She was so compassionate and clearly cared deeply about how my husband and I were doing physically and emotionally. She felt more like a friend by the time we left the hospital than my nurse. I’m honestly not sure I would have made it through that full night of continuous disappointment with my progress without her positive attitude and initiative. Her support after delivery was one of the things that helped me stay positive and feel a little bit more in control of the situation. I loved having Hali as my nurse, support system, and trusted care expert. I truly don’t know what we would have done without her.