Mount Sinai Queens Nurses Share Memories With COVID-19 Patients’ Survivors

Updated on Jun 30, 2022 | COVID-19, Featured, Patient Stories, Stories of Strength

From left: The Rev. Dr. Rachelle Zazzu, Chaplain; Melissa Farmer, RN; Stefanie Dimitriadis, RN; Amparo Sullivan, RN; Jonathan Nover, RN, MBA, Senior Director of Nursing for the Emergency Department; and Francelia Thomas, RN, Nurse Manager.

The nurses of Mount Sinai Queens are giving a precious gift to families of patients who succumbed to COVID-19 during the height of the pandemic—their memories of the patients’ last days.

In one letter, carefully hand-written on lined paper, Amparo Sullivan, RN, reached out to the family of a patient who had “a nice smile behind her oxygen mask” and had spent peaceful moments chatting and holding her hand. “This courageous woman wasn’t just thinking about herself but was deeply concerned about how the pandemic was affecting us,” Ms. Sullivan wrote. “Her bravery and thoughtfulness gave me inspiration.”

Since May, Mount Sinai Queens nurses have been writing such letters to family members, in a program that arose from their determination to console families and their own need to remember the patients they worked so hard to save. The hospital is now returning to normal operations. But in April and early May, Mount Sinai Queens was hard hit by the pandemic; visitors were not allowed at that time, out of an abundance of caution, to help protect patients and staff.

“Our nurses were caring for people as they died, and I was praying for people as they died, and no family was present. And it’s heartbreaking,” says the Rev. Dr. Rachelle Zazzu, MA, DDS, Staff Chaplain for Mount Sinai Queens. “So we have been writing letters to the families, fundamentally saying, ‘Your mother was not just patient No. 1234. We cared for her, and we saw beauty in her, and we want you to know that when she died, she was taken care of with a lot of care.’”

So far about a dozen letters have been written by nurses including Ms. Sullivan, Melissa Farmer, RN, Stefanie Dimitriadis, RN, and Tamara Boncic-Heins, RN. The program began with a suggestion from Ms. Sullivan, says Jonathan Nover, RN, MBA, Senior Director of Nursing for the Emergency Department (ED) at Mount Sinai Queens.

“It was a very emotional time for everyone in the ED. So what Ampy Sullivan envisioned was this: If you are with a patient who is at an end-of-life moment and there is something you would like to share later with the patient’s family, jot down a note with the details and drop it into our Daisy box,” Mr. Nover said, referring to an awards program at the hospital. “Then the goal would be, when things calm down a little bit, to create a procedure for getting those letters to the patients’ families.

From left: Amparo Sullivan RN, Melissa Farmer RN, and Stefanie Dimitriadis RN.

That is indeed what happened. In addition to compiling the notes, Dr. Zazzu and Mr. Nover reached out to nurses for more remembrances during the daily huddles of departments such as the ED and Preoperative, Postoperative, and Palliative Care. Even after many weeks, the nurses had “amazing, vivid memories,” Mr. Nover says.

The nurses were told, “We don’t want this to be a burden, because you have a lot to do,” Dr.  Zazzu says. “We are just saying that if writing a letter can help relieve a burden for you, all you have to do is write it, and I will take care of the rest, make sure it gets to the family.”

After receiving the letters, family members have been writing back in profound gratitude. One family called the Mount Sinai Queens nurses “RN angels” and offered to pray for their safety as they cared for patients.  The letter-writing program is now well-established at Mount Sinai Queens, Mr. Nover and Dr. Zazzu say. And they hope it can spread through the Health System and beyond, because even though the crisis has waned in New York City, patients can still die without family members, far from home.

“It’s nice that we can tell families about their loved ones, and their stay, and how it affected us,” Ms. Sullivan says. “We hope it will give them a little peace of mind, and it’s therapeutic for us to share these experiences.”

Here are some of the messages from nurses to families, from heart to heart.

“Your mother was in no distress when she passed peacefully. I spoke to her, and told her how much her family loves her.”

“Your father was so, so brave. I won’t forget him.”

“People show you who they are down to the core when they are in life-and-death situations. Your mother was so kind. I prayed for her on my lunch break.”

Read more stories about patients at Mount Sinai

A Department Overflowing with Stories of Strength

Updated on Jun 30, 2022 | Stories of Strength

There are so many heroes and so many stories to tell about the actions of the respiratory therapists at The Mount Sinai Hospital.

We had therapists who contracted the virus in the early days of the crisis and as it progressed, but as soon as they were cleared to come back, they picked up right where they left off. They came back to work, ran with Rapid Response, helped with intubations and continued to put patients on BIPAPs/high flow nasal cannulas; therapists  who worked 16 to 24 hours straight because they knew the patients needed them and we needed them; therapists who had to isolate themselves from their children and parents for weeks in order to keep them safe; therapists, who without a second thought, walked into the rooms of COVID-19 patients to tape or re-tape an endotracheal tube so the patients could be proned by the Proning Team; neonatal/pediatric therapists, most of whom had never taken care of adult patients before, but stepped up and stood beside their colleagues.

So, as far as stories of strengths go, the Respiratory Care Department at The Mount Sinai Hospital, my department, is overflowing with them. For their efforts during this COVID-19 pandemic, for putting their lives on the line, and for their service every day, I would like to recognize them for their perseverance, dedication, and unmatched show of strength.

Submitted by: Alaiza Bautista, RRT, Clinical Manager, Respiratory Care, The Mount Sinai Hospital

 

A ‘Source of Truth’ and Strength at the Helm

Jun 5, 2020 | Stories of Strength

Throughout the COVID-19 crisis, the front-line staff have been acknowledged for their hard work and dedication to patient care. I also wanted to take a moment to recognize one of the strongest leaders I have had the pleasure of working with during this time: Cardinale Smith, MD, PhD, Hematology and Medical Oncology.

Dr. Smith has shown what it truly means to be a leader during a crisis. Throughout the past few months, while she may not have been feeling this way, Dr. Smith always presented as calm and collected. I have been referring to her as my “source of truth” during this time. Even if she was not delivering news we wanted to hear, we always knew it was accurate and real. Each day, she sent an email with system updates and included a quote at the end. Every day, I read her email and sometimes went straight to the quote—just to have some sense of realism as to what had happened and what was to come. We were all on edge, and continue to be, but Dr. Smith is always, and I mean always, available for questions or clarification, even questions of the smallest of nature.

I am truly grateful to be working alongside a colleague who has helped me get through the most unconventional and unexpected course of events, which has thrown our personal and working lives into a state of uncertainty and confusion. Dr. Smith, you made each day just a little easier, knowing you were there. The Oncology team is beyond lucky to have you at the helm, providing much appreciated guidance. Please take a moment for yourself to take a breath.

Submitted by: Jenny Waltzer, Senior Director, Oncology Administration, The Mount Sinai Hospital

 

Physician Steps In and Makes Delivery to a Patient in Need

Jun 5, 2020 | Stories of Strength

In preparation for the transformation of an inpatient rehabilitation unit into a COVID-19 unit, patients needed to be discharged early. Therefore we needed to manage post-discharge needs, such as medication delivery services. Kevin Frison, MD, Department of Rehabilitation and Human Performance at The Mount Sinai Hospital, discharged a spinal cord injury patient home on a Thursday.

Because the weekend was approaching, he contacted the patient’s pharmacy prior to discharge to ensure that her medications would be delivered. Initially, the pharmacy said they couldn’t deliver her prescription because the driver was not available. But because the patient lived only a few blocks away from the pharmacy, Dr. Frison arranged for the pharmacy to do a walkover delivery as soon as the patient got home that evening and contacted them. The next day during morning sign-out, Dr. Frison learned that his patient had not received her medication. He contacted the pharmacy and was told that the delivery wasn’t made because they had decided to close early. Dr. Frison asked if they could deliver that day, and once again, they said no. He called the patient to see if there were any other pharmacies that she might use instead. He found their numbers and called all of them, to no avail, for delivery that day.

Dr. Frison did not want his patient to go another day—or the entire weekend—without her medication.  So he decided to deliver it himself.  He drove to the original pharmacy to pick up the package and then went to the patient’s apartment.

Her words made it all worthwhile. “Not only are you a great doctor, but you are an excellent human being,” she said. “Tell your mother she did an amazing job raising such a fine son.” Dr. Frison shared with her that his parents were ill in the hospital a few times, which deeply impacted him. As a result, he treats every patient as if they were his mother or father, because that’s how he would want his parent’s doctors to treat them.

Submitted by:  Jacalyn Filler, LCSW,  Department of Social Work Services,  The Mount Sinai Hospital  

Despite Personal Challenges, A Dedicated and Calm Leader

Jun 5, 2020 | Stories of Strength

I wanted to share the story of my colleague Natasha Fuentes, Senior Manager of Business Development, Mount Sinai South Nassau. Her story is one of perseverance and inspires us all. In November 2019, Natasha and her husband, Ramon, went to El Salvador so that he could finalize his citizenship, a goal they have worked on for almost ten years. They were taking the final steps of their journey, and it was to take three to four weeks at most. Sadly, they were informed that the law had changed, requiring Ramon to remain in El Salvador for an additional six months.

Natasha returned to work, saddened and worried, but always faithful. Whenever asked how she was doing, her reply was “Thank God, I am OK and my husband is OK.”

In March, COVID-19 spread, devastating the world. Through Natasha, we learned that the country of El Salvador immediately responded, closed their borders, and all businesses were closed. They remain closed to this day. She has been unable to travel back to El Salvador and has not seen Ramon since January.

I have never seen someone as focused, dedicated, and in control. During this time, Natasha’s leadership role expanded, and she has been the calm during the storm for many. She has maintained the financial well-being of the department. When staff fell ill, Natasha stepped in without disruption to operations. And she has led with grace and compassion, extending to outside of the office. She even assisted in providing disinfecting wipes to those in need in our office. Her care and concern for others is wonderful.

Natasha’s work ethic is nothing surprising, as many will tell you, but to maintain that ethic amidst such difficulty deserves to be recognized.

Submitted by: Linda Goldstein, Intake Coordinator, Home Care, Mount Sinai South Nassau

Raising Funds to Help Keep Front-Line Staff Safe

May 29, 2020 | Stories of Strength

Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, Pavan Lohia, Clinical Research Coordinator, Division of Internal Medicine, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, has helped provide vital personal protective equipment (PPE) to The Mount Sinai Hospital, EMS agencies, and other organizations across the country in need of PPE.

He was able to do so by launching a fund-raiser on his personal website pavlyfe.com/donate, and using the donations to obtain surgical masks, hand sanitizers, and other items.

Pavan also partnered with colleagues from the University of California, Irvine, and the University of California, San Diego, to source 3D printed reusable masks. At Mount Sinai for almost a year, Pavan is thrilled to have had the opportunity to donate nearly 1,000 bottles of hand sanitizer and hundreds of surgical and 3D reusable masks to The Mount Sinai Hospital. He plans to continue as long as there is a need.

Submitted by: Shynah James, Project Manager, Department of Medicine ,The Mount Sinai Hospital

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