Hospital Heaven

Johns Hopkins Hospital

A lot goes through your mind when you stare at a hole inside a person as big as a soccer ball. Some might get nauseous, some might panic about how they need to be healthier, and some crazies light up inside with giggles of excitement.

Oddly enough, after years of fainting at the sight of blood, I am definitely the latter. It turns out, I am quite the procedure junkie. It must be the surgeon inside me. This semester of clinicals I felt like Christina on Grey’s Anatomy. I raced around the unit trying to be there to observe every procedure so I’d be prepared to do them on my own. Come in at lunch, no problem! Stay late, it’s too much fun to say no! At shift’s end, I found myself hungrier than ever, but happier than a kid at Disneyland. From pulling staples out of a patient’s neck to assisting in a wound vac change, I have been in hospital heaven.

But the real high comes from the moments with the patient. Yesterday it was comforting my patient as she battled the pain from her wound vac change. The joy was watching her face muscles soften when I put my hand on her arm. It was looking into her needing eyes when the pain was bad and smiling as I talked about her grandchildren. There’s nothing better. Not even kissing.

Well…maybe kissing.

I was thinking the other day at clinicals as I bathed the sweetest old lady that what nurses do is sacred. This lovely lady who would shout out at my instructor “this pumpkin is coming home with me” was weak from her recovery from surgery and old age. She couldn’t wash herself, couldn’t stand alone. Strange as it might sound, as I bathed her, I kept thinking about the Saviour washing the disciple’s feet and as I did, my experience with this woman felt sacred. Something about how vulnerable and trusting she was reminded me about the Atonement. How weak we are made by our inadequacies and our mistakes and how our trust in Christ’s sacrifice and love is never in violated or in vain. I’m so grateful for such a Saviour, so grateful that I know His love for us.

There are a lot of places that can be temples in life. Our bodies are temples for our spirits. Our homes are temples for our families. The tops of mountains were temples in ancient times. While only the home can compare to the Holy Temple in sacredness, there are types of temples in many parts of life. For me, the hospital is one such type. It’s a place where I’m learning more about God. It’s a place where I hope to become more like Him. And it’s a place where I see His face.