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Patient Experience

Burn Unit Nurse Heals with Humor and Dignity

Richie Gil's, RN, BSN, CCRN, parents taught him to live by the golden rule: Treat others as you would like to be treated. Nowhere is that maxim more apparent than in Gil's approach to caring for his patients as a nurse in the University of Chicago Medical Center's Burn Unit.

Gil feels that his duty as a nurse is not limited to the walls of the hospital and does not end when his shift is over. Rather, he believes that providing the highest quality care to his patients includes extending kindness and compassion that he says have the power to heal the whole person.

In the Burn Unit, patients endure dressing changes that may take hours to complete, often undergo multiple surgeries and skin grafting, and complete extensive amounts of physical therapy. They have a tremendous amount
of pain that sometimes no amount of medication can relieve, Gil said. While it can be emotionally draining to watch his patients suffer through such physical hardship, Gil said he sees it as an opportunity to make an even bigger
difference as a nurse.

One particular patient, who expressed his gratitude in a letter to the Medical Center, said Gil provided expert nursing care, but more importantly friendship in a time of great need. This patient, like many others, was admitted emergently to the Burn Unit and didn't have anything with him other than his wallet and cell phone. His cell phone battery quickly died, and he had no access to the phone numbers for friends and family. Cut-off from his support network, the patient's physical condition was made worse by his sense of isolation.

In addition to caring for his wounds, Gil started visiting the patient to keep him company. "I would go to his room just to talk to him about anything every chance I could get," he said. "As I get older, I am more aware that nobody should be alone in their weakest moments. I have a soft spot for patients who have no family or friends to visit them when they are sick, and I've learned that patients appreciate every minute we spend talking to them."

During one of his visits, Gil learned that his patient's modesty made him extremely uncomfortable in the hospital gown because it didn't cover enough of his body. Gil gave him a pair of hospital pants, but saw that those, too, didn't fit properly. That day, on his way home from work, Gil stopped at Target to try to find a charger for the man's cell phone and some undergarments to make him more comfortable.

"He was so happy when I gave him the undergarments. They gave him dignity in his healing process." Gil said. "I didn't realize the impact of that gesture until I talked to him over the phone after he was discharged."

As a nurse, Gil said he resists the hazard of becoming task-oriented and always tries to see his patients as human beings with lessons to teach. "I learn a lot from listening to the stories my patients share and they like it when I make them laugh. I believe laughter is an underrated way to alleviate someone's misery. Sometimes a pinch of humor can relieve the discomfort that medicine cannot."

Richie Gil (left), RN, BSN, CCRN, with Lawrence Gottlieb, MD, Director, Burn and Complex Wound Center Richie Gil (left), RN, BSN, CCRN, with Lawrence Gottlieb, MD, Director, Burn and Complex Wound Center

"I learn a lot from listening to the stories my patients share and they like it when I make them laugh."- Richie Gil, RN, BSN, CCRN