The room was dark and quiet as I finished up my nursing note.  My patient was tucked into her own bed and finally asleep as her daughter slowly ran her fingers through her mother’s white curls.  I nodded goodbye and stepped out.  Once in the car I checked my phone and found a message from the hospice intake worker that I had another patient to go and see…an urgent open.  I read the directions and something tugged at my brain telling me I knew this address.  I ran into the office to retrieve the paper work.  Once back in my car I opened the file.  The name was that of my friend…my friend that was NOT in the endstage of breast cancer with metastasization.  “What is going on?” I muttered to myself.

I called the intake nurse and asked about the call for this patient.  “I got an urgent call from her doctor telling me that she had just returned from Boston after receiving trial medications that failed…and she is days from dying. She wants to die at home…she asked for you.”  My heart raced and my stomach clenched…tears ran down my face as I heaved in deep breaths…this cant be true…I just talked to her a couple weeks ago and she said how well she was doing…

I prayed during the 20 minute drive for courage, wisdom and strength…I prayed it wasn’t true.

I arrived to be welcomed at the door by my friend’s husband who was in tears.  Read more…