Life and Death in 12 Hours | Christin Thankachan, BSN, RN-BC

Nov 29, 2022

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For all the crucial work physicians do in the hospital, no one spends more time with hospitalized patients than nurses. This is especially true in the intensive care unit, where nurses serve as patients’ conduits with their medical team and perhaps even with the outside world. Joining us in this episode is Christin Thankachan, an ICU nurse at Stanford Health Care who cares for the most seriously ill cancer patients in the hospital. Over the course of our stirring conversation, we ask her to reflect on how she guides patients and their families, with a comforting and compassionate hand, through life’s darkest moments. In addition, Christin shares the unique challenges she has faced as a frontline worker during the COVID-19 pandemic, and how she has maintained hope and meaning through these trying times.

In this episode, you will hear about:

How Hurricane Sandy pushed Christin towards a career in nursing - 2:06
The differences between a nurse’s responsibilities in an intensive care unit and a medical/surgical unit - 5:13
What a typical day is like for an ICU nurse - 7:26
How Christin finds the physical, emotional, and psychological stamina to care for some of the sickest patients in the hospital - 10:22
The kinds of relationships Christin forms with her patients and how she strives to elevate the human connection - 13:49
The importance Christin places on recognizing the fullness of the humanity within each patient - 21:16
The power of hope for patients facing serious illnesses - 31:50
What it was like to serve as a frontline worker in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic - 36:38
Advice on how to stay connected to the most meaningful aspects of a healthcare profession, even in the darkest times - 40:47

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