Tricia Ingram
May 2025
Tricia
Ingram
,
BSN, RN
NICU
Banner - University Medical Center Phoenix
Phoenix
,
AZ
United States
Without Tricia, we would not have those photos to remember our sweet M forever.
Our daughter, M, was born via emergency C-section due to reduced fetal movement. After birth, she was not able to breathe on her own or move, and showed no reflexes or signs of neurological activity. About 12 hours after her birth, during the first day shift, I met Tricia. Tricia helped us through every step of the excruciating journey of meeting our daughter, holding her, getting to know her as best we could, and eventually saying goodbye 5 days later.
In the face of terrible sorrow, Tricia remained positive and objective while showing as much compassion and tenderness to M as if she were her own daughter. With M only living for 5 days, every nurse that cared for her was bound to have a huge impact on her life, either positive or negative. I cannot overstate the extent to which Tricia swung the entirety of M's life for the better (for M and for her family). Tricia did a few things for M and our family that I will always remember:
She facilitated the most special skin-to-skin time with M. She kept all the cords as out of the way as possible while keeping M safe.
She was always reminding us to take photos with M and even helped take some herself.
She was amazing at keeping us updated with all the tests that M was going through, and when she was back in her room for us to come see her.
When it became evident early on that M was not improving and would likely have a short life on earth, Tricia made sure our family and friends were able to meet M and spend time with her.
Tricia got M moved to a larger room down in a quieter section of the NICU so that the family's time with her could be more private. Above all that, the thing I'll remember most is that after Tricia's second consecutive day shift on Tuesday, she was not scheduled for any more shifts that week. She tried to pick up a shift for Wednesday but couldn't. However, she still came to the hospital for 5 hours on her day off and helped us facilitate professional photos of M. Without Tricia, we would not have those photos to remember our sweet M forever. When it was time for Tricia to leave, she was so kind to M and us and told us how M will always be a part of her and she will never forget us. I'm not entirely convinced that Tricia is a real person. I think she might be an angel who just dropped into M's life for those few days. We will never forget her.
In the face of terrible sorrow, Tricia remained positive and objective while showing as much compassion and tenderness to M as if she were her own daughter. With M only living for 5 days, every nurse that cared for her was bound to have a huge impact on her life, either positive or negative. I cannot overstate the extent to which Tricia swung the entirety of M's life for the better (for M and for her family). Tricia did a few things for M and our family that I will always remember:
She facilitated the most special skin-to-skin time with M. She kept all the cords as out of the way as possible while keeping M safe.
She was always reminding us to take photos with M and even helped take some herself.
She was amazing at keeping us updated with all the tests that M was going through, and when she was back in her room for us to come see her.
When it became evident early on that M was not improving and would likely have a short life on earth, Tricia made sure our family and friends were able to meet M and spend time with her.
Tricia got M moved to a larger room down in a quieter section of the NICU so that the family's time with her could be more private. Above all that, the thing I'll remember most is that after Tricia's second consecutive day shift on Tuesday, she was not scheduled for any more shifts that week. She tried to pick up a shift for Wednesday but couldn't. However, she still came to the hospital for 5 hours on her day off and helped us facilitate professional photos of M. Without Tricia, we would not have those photos to remember our sweet M forever. When it was time for Tricia to leave, she was so kind to M and us and told us how M will always be a part of her and she will never forget us. I'm not entirely convinced that Tricia is a real person. I think she might be an angel who just dropped into M's life for those few days. We will never forget her.