posted on Jun, 30 2010 @ 03:12 PM
I was a Nursing Assistant for several years in the Late 90's. In an Acute Care Facility I worked on the 5th Floor where patients came but did not
leave...or so I thought.
A patient came in from a Nursing Home with a severe decubitus to his rectum. He was in a dementia state and locked into a fetal position. It was
necessary to use "Strict Isolation" measures because of VRE and Tuberculosis. This was a very old patient.
My nurse asked me in when my shift started, the Night Shift, because he was a new admission and she needed to walk me through his condition. She told
me that he has been in this situation for several years; she worked with this patient previously.
We put on ever measure of covering from head to foot and doubled gloved ourselves before entering the room. He was indeed in a very sad state,
horrific would be putting it mildly. His wound was the size of a football and just as deep. As she began to do her dressing change I washed the
patient and then finally was able to complete the bed linen changes. I asked the nurse why no one had told this patient that it was OK to let go.
She chuckled and said, "if you want to be my guest".
I reached down and laid my hand on his chest. He was breathing very rapidly as he had the entire time we were in the room with him. I began to rock
him back and forth, slowly but firmly, as I was rocking him I spoke to him. I told him that everything was OK, to listen to just my voice. I told
him that what ever he sees to ignore and only focus on just my voice. I told him it was time to go, that there was no reason to stay here any longer.
I promised him that everything would be OK and that he didn't need to be frightened any longer. I continued to rock him and we both noticed his
breathing began to slow down. It seemed as if he was going to sleep, I could feel him relaxing. I told him that what ever he sees, no matter how
scary it is or confusing it is, to just walk towards it...just walk forward and disregard everything ...just keep walking. We both smiled and I said,
"he is asleep". We then exited the room and removed all of our gear, washed up and headed to the Nurses Station down the hall.
As we were walking, suddenly from the end of the hall, we hear this incredibly loud "CRASH", it was loud. We ran back down the hall checking room
to room and finally made it to the patient's room. We could peek in and see that the 5th Floor double window was completely smashed. We rushed to
get geared up again for "Isolation Measures" and entered the room.
It was so eerie, a Summer night outside yet the room was ice cold, I swear I could see mist. There was a distinct odd odor I have never smelt before.
I looked and the patient was exactly where we had left him cleaned and covered, he was dead. It didn't take an expert to know he had passed just by
the color of his skin. I felt him and he was ice cold. The window, which was completely gone was scattered about below on the back parking lot that
the room overlooked. Only something as large as a chair or a table could have taken the window out but nothing was missing from the room. Only glass
on the pavement below and nothing more. Not a shard was found in the room.
There was a subsequent investigation. The patient himself had no family and was a Ward of the State, there was no one to claim him.
All the Nurses gathered around and we spoke of this and I told them that I think when he died that he still did not know, that he thought he was still
physical and when he looked around he finally saw himself for the first time in years and he must of become very frightened by what he saw; in a state
of panic and fear he must of jumped out the window, not even realizing that he had passed on. My hair was standing on end the entire night after
that.
I later tried this same technique to another patient who was on a respirator and in a coma. He passed while I was washing him.
I finally left this career!