| Hematology-Oncology staff |
| I'll warn you now, this will be the largest section of angels. I love these people more than mere words can ever convey. From the beginning, I have written and told all of you about the unique nature of the Heme-Onc hospital unit. You feel it the second you walk through the doors. Sure, the rooms are larger, the decor has been given special attention, and there are perks on the floor you won't find elsewhere. And not one of those things mean diddly foo. What makes Heme-Onc special, is that we are a family. We families, we patients, we caregivers, we medical personnel...WE are family. As with any situation, perception of reality is often skewed by the angle with which you view it. As a Heme-Onc mother, I assumed that perhaps my view of the floor was rather rosy, and based more on personal experience than on reality. I'm ever so pleased to report, that I was wrong. Through the last several hospital stays, I've been lucky enough to meet an abundance of people who independently reaffirmed my beliefs in our "Family". Floating nurses, who work all over the hospital, are awed by the attitudes of the Heme-Onc nurses and parents. Time and again, I had discussions with nurses about the feeling of connectedness on the our floor. Time and again, I heard the words "family", "togetherness", "unique". And time and again, my heart soared as I thanked the universe for bringing together such an astounding group of people to help my child find her health. Lest I be remiss, I need to discuss that there are two distinct halves of care for a Heme-Onc patient. There is the J-5, in-house hospital staff, and then there is the Heme-Onc outpatient clinic side. Both elements are so ridiculously full of outstanding people that its hard to believe they managed to coalesce them all into one department. And yet, I still haven't mentioned our doctors. There must be a universal law that dictates only the kindest and most caring of humans are allowed to hold the hearts of parents with the sickest children. There are no haughty, dictatorial, stuff-shirts here. Only thoughtful, friendly, gentle people who invest their hearts and souls in their patients, often to the detriment of their own lives. They believe in the intrinsic value of each life, and spend their days fighting the beast to save its smallest victims. In the following pages, I'll do my best to introduce you to our Heme-Onc family. ( I'm working on tracking them all down for pictures.) I think you'll see one abiding constant among all of the photos - huge, warm, cheerful smiles. And no, they're not hamming it up for the camera. The friendly, charming countenances you see, are exactly what the children see, every day - all the time. God has touched the hearts of each of these wonderful people and given them the rare blessing of an ability to reach past their own reality to embrace the hearts and souls of the families in their care. They are all worthy of the highest praise and infinite gratitude. Its a gift from the universe that we are able to entrust our daughter to them. |
| And now...on to the pictures! |
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Our
Angels:
Angels:
Avalon's Army of Angels