Recently, my wife Rikelma and I welcomed our second son into the world at Holy Family Hospital. It is the second time in a little over two years that we have been awed by the care, enthusiasm and commitment of the nurses, doctors and staff at our community hospital. Much has been written and covered regarding the fiasco caused by Steward Health’s corporate mismanagement (to put it kindly). Not enough has been said or written about the people who show up to work every day at these facilities and the high standards they maintain for their vocation.
When we arrived at the hospital, the first thing we noticed were several familiar faces from a few years prior. There wasn’t a mass exodus of the nurses and staff that provided us with excellent care for our first son’s arrival. It was even more reassuring when I noticed several of my former classmates from Haverhill High were still working there too. Some of my Riky’s former students also work there. There’s nothing like a familiar face or two when undergoing major healthcare decisions.
As I waited to be called into the operating room, a nurse not assigned to us walked by and warmly asked, “does dad want a picture in the OR gear before you go in?” Perhaps too excited, I said “yes please” and I could picture my wife’s eyes rolling from the OR.
In the operating room, doctors and nurses worked with diligence, candor and just the right amount of humor to keep us calm and comfortable. When our baby arrived, the entire room rejoiced and made us feel like we were in the hands of family.
Embracing my son for the first time, I was overwhelmed with gratitude—for my courageous wife, for the health of my baby and for the inspiring characters that helped deliver our son safely.
During Riky’s recovery, that standard of care continued. In the first couple days with our son, the wit and wisdom of Holy Family nurses, doctors and staff made sleepless nights more tolerable. We were patiently reminded how to swaddle. Riky received frequent encouragement and the much-needed reminder to allow herself to be catered to.
In the weeks and months ahead, Steward will continue to advance through a bankruptcy process and our state government will continue to prioritize the continuity of care and the preservation of this incredible workforce. As a community, we must rally around our hospital workers and patients at both Holy Family Haverhill and Methuen. We must celebrate their resilience and maintain confidence in their care. We certainly do.
As we prepared to check-out of the hospital, a nurse entered our room that we had not met. I started to thank her and her team for their tenacity in sticking around to work in our community hospital despite the headlines and the ability to pick up and work anywhere else. Before I could continue, she started to provide me a history of the hospital and that of the Steward corporation. She was surprised to know how in the weeds I was on the issue and didn’t know of my day job. She laughed and said, “well I’ve been here for a long time and I’ve always said, they may sign my paycheck, but I don’t work for them… I work for Holy Family… I work for this community.”