An attractive woman of 32, Kate had had her share of suitors, and she did date often, but she was in no hurry to settle down. She was very friendly with the doctors and nurses that she worked with, and she maintained a pleasant existence. Working with various patients and various injuries and disease, Kate soon found her career heading towards neurological care.

She became intrigued by all the different people that came in from some sort of head injury, and she soon found herself working in the hospital's neurological intensive care unit. The patients ran the gamut from teenagers involved in car accidents, to men thrown from motorcycles, to senior citizens who suffered brain damage from a stroke. Her days were spent caring for the patients, and providing whatever comfort and relief she could muster for the families who came to see a loved one in a coma.

The environment was not one of hope, and the longer that a patient toiled in the comatose state, the lower his chances of recovery were. It was a demanding position, and she took on her duties with a strong passion and dedication, and she worked wonderfully with the patients.

Most of the patients were hooked up to many machines, from heart monitors, IVs and catheters. Although the word coma conjures up many dreadful images, it is a much different case. Many coma patients lay in bed with their eyes open, yet unresponsive. In some cases, the patients are able to move their arms and legs, and they can even respond with hand signals and the like. Medically, a patient is not considered out of a coma until he can communicate, or show an awareness and understanding of what is around him. In many cases, there were comatose patients who were quite active in their beds, and this is what led to optimism and renewed hope for the families.

As her time in the ICU unit progressed, she was offered a position on the night staff. Being single, and without any family responsibilities, it made for a logical move. It also came with more pay, and it relieved her of some of the family interaction. Although she enjoyed helping people and growing close to the patients and their families, the unit she was now in brought with it a lot of bad situations. Working at night gave her some distance from the families that were trying to cope with a loved one who may never wake up.

"We have a new one," said June as Kate came in for her shift. June explained to her that a 15 year-old boy had come in from a car accident, and that she had to deal with his family all day. "He looks like a great kid, and his family was really shocked by his condition. It looks like he is going to be OK, as there has been some slight reaction." She went on and gave Kate a full update on all of the patients, and she was pleased to hear that Mr. Miller had been moved to a regular room. Success for the ICU nurses was when one of their patients was moved out of ICU and into a regular room in the hospital, and they all felt a bolt of pride with each successful patient......(cont)