Jessica Carey, CNA, HHA started her Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) journey as an Emergency Room Technician at the Fairview - University of Minnesota Medical Center. In search of something more individual-focused, she explored home care where she discovered a passion for attending to end-of-life stage patients. She began to notice how much kindness, humanity, and compassion surfaces not only in herself but also in her colleagues, patient family members, and in the patients themselves at this point in their lives. She has now been with Allina Hospice and Palliative Care as a CNA/Home Health Aide for three years. The photo is a self-portrait taken just before seeing her first COVID-19 positive patient. She took the photo to document the beginning of a new time in her life. Jessica has seen 10-12 COVID patients up to this date plus many more non-COVID patients. The best part of her day is when she breaks through the PPE barrier and makes patients smile.
An important accompaniment to this poem is the photograph of a woman dressed in protective gear for the coronavirus. The woman in the photo happens to be the author’s daughter (but that is irrelevant) who works daily in hospice care with patients who have the coronavirus. The author believes the poem and photo send a simple but important message about preserving humanity in these difficult times.