My why A question I have been asked a lot is why I chose to stay at Grant Regional. For me that answer is very simple—my co-workers are like a second family. We are there for each other through it all, from work life to home life. Just shy of my one-year anniversary at GRHC, my husband and I welcomed our daughter, Hayden, to our family at home and at GRHC. Fast-forward one year and three weeks, our lives got flipped upside down. Our son, Carson, was playing with Hayden in a backyard playhouse; I was 10 feet away cleaning the pool; and my husband was mowing the lawn. Suddenly something did not feel right. I peeked into the playhouse to find only Carson. My heart began to race, and I ran to the pond in our backyard to find Hayden floating face down in the water. Springing into action My first responder training took over as I pulled my lifeless child from the water and began CPR as I yelled for my husband to call 911. (This was the first time in my entire life I had done CPR on a real person, and it was my own child.) Being a volunteer member of Potosi EMS, I heard my phone and pager go off as the page went out for a crew to respond to our home. I continued CPR until EMS arrived— which seemed like an eternity. I was thinking to myself that I am not planning a first birthday and a funeral in the same month. I was able to get Hayden back with agonal breathing as the crew pulled into our driveway. During those moments, I felt relief knowing that my EMS family had my baby and we were on our way to a hospital. ‘Rach, we got her’ There was no doubt in my mind that GRHC was where we needed to be going. I remember running into the ER repeating over and over again that this was my baby, this was my baby, as EMS brought her into Trauma 2. I remember making eye contact with Carla Jensen, RN, as she said, “Rach, we got her.” It was in that moment, watching from outside the trauma room, I felt waves of emotions as the reality of the situation sank in. A switch was flipped, and I became a mom and not a first responder. But also at the same time, a weight was lifted off my shoulders. There was no better place for my baby girl during this tragedy than GRHC. I experienced feelings of relief while I watched my co-workers work on and care for my child as if she was family, and that feeling is why I continue to choose GRHC. —Rachel Loeffelholz, APNP, FNP-BC 7 FALL 2022
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