9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 As patients, we usually remember[br]the names of our doctors, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 but often we forget[br]the names of our nurses. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 I remember one. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 I had breast cancer a few years ago, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and somehow I managed[br]to get through the surgeries 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and the beginning[br]of the treatment just fine. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 I could hide what was going on. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 Everybody didn't really have to know. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 I could walk my daughter to school, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 I could go out to dinner with my husband, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 I could fool people. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 But then my chemo was scheduled to begin, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and that terrified me 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 because I knew that I was going to lose[br]every single hair on my body 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 because of the kind of chemo[br]that I was going to have. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 I wasn't going to be able[br]to pretend anymore 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 as though everything was normal. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 I was scared. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 I knew what it felt like to have[br]everybody treating me with kid gloves, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and I just wanted to feel normal. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 I had a port installed in my chest. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 I went to my first day of chemotherapy, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and I was an emotional wreck. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 My nurse Joanne walked in the door, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and every bone in my body was telling[br]me to get up out of that chair 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and take for the hills. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 But Joanne looked at me and talked[br]to me like we were old friends. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 And then she asked me, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 "Where'd you get your highlights done?" 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 (Laughter) 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 And I was like, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 are you kidding me? 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 You're going to talk to me about my hair[br]when I'm on the verge of losing it? 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 I was kind of angry, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and I said, "Really? Hair?" 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 And with a shrug[br]of her shoulders she said, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 "It's gonna grow back." 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 And in that moment she said[br]the one thing I had overlooked, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and that was that at some point, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 my life would get back to normal. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 She really believed that. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 And so I believed it, too. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 Now, worrying about losing your hair[br]when you're fighting cancer 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 may seem silly at first, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 but it's not just that you're worried[br]about how you're going to look. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 It's that you're worried that everybody's[br]going to treat you so carefully. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 Joanne made me feel normal[br]for first time in six months. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 We talked about her boyfriends, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 we talked about looking[br]for apartments in New York City, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and we talked about my reaction[br]to the chemotherapy -- 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 all kind of mixed in together. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 I always wondered, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 how did she so instinctively[br]know just how to talk to me? 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 Joanne Staha and my admiration for her 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 marked the beginning of my journey[br]into the world of nurses. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 A few years later, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 I was asked to do a project 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 that would celebrate the work[br]that nurses do. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 I started with Joanne, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and I met over 100 nurses[br]across the country. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 I spent five years interviewing,[br]photographing and filming nurses 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 for a book and a documentary film. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 With my team, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 we mapped a trip across America[br]that would take us to places 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 dealing with some of the biggest[br]public health issues 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 facing our nation -- 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 aging, war, poverty, prisons. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 And then we went places 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 where we would find the largest[br]concentration of patients 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 dealing with those issues. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 Then we asked hospitals and facilities[br]to nominate nurses 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 who would best represent them. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 One of the first nurses I met[br]was Bridget Kumbela. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 Bridget was born in Camaroon, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 the oldest of four children. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 Her father was at work when he[br]had fallen from the fourth floor 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and really hurt his back. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 And he talked a lot about what it was like[br]to be flat on your back 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and not get the kind[br]of care that you need. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 That propelled Bridget to go[br]into the profession of nursing. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 Now, as a nurse in the Bronx, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 she has a really diverse group[br]of patients that she cares for, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 from all walks of life, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and from all different religions. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 She's devoted her career[br]to understanding the impact 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 of our cultural differences[br]when it comes to our health. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 She spoke of a patient, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 a Native American patient that she had, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 that wanted to bring a bunch[br]of feathers into the ICU. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 That's how he found spiritual comfort. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 And she spoke of advocating for him, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and said that patients come[br]from all different religions 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and use all different kinds[br]of objects for comfort, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 whether it's a holy rosary[br]or it's a symbolic feather, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 it all needs to be supported. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 This is Jason Short. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 Jason is a home health nurse[br]in the Appalachian mountains, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and his dad had a gas station[br]and a repair shop when he was growing up. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 So he worked on cars in the community[br]that he now serves as a nurse. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 When he was in college, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 it was just not macho at all[br]to become a nurse, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 so he avoided it for years. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 He drove trucks for a little while, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 but his life path was always[br]pulling him back to nursing. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 As a nurse in the Appalachian mountains, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 Jason goes places that an ambulance[br]can't even get to. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 In this photograph, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 he's standing in what used to be a road. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 Top of the mountain mining[br]flooded that road, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and now the only was for Jason[br]to get to the patient 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 living in that house 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 with black lung disease, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 is to drive his SUV against[br]the current up that creek. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 The day I was with him, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 we ripped the front fender off the car. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 The next morning he got up, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 put the car on the lift, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 fixed the fender, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and then headed out[br]to meet his next patient. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 I witnessed Jason[br]caring for this gentleman 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 with such enormous compassion, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and I was struck again by how intimate[br]the work of nursing really is. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 When I met Brian McMillian, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 he was raw. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 He had just come back from a deployment, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and he hadn't really settled back in[br]to life in San Diego yet. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 He talked about his experience[br]of being a nurse in Germany, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and taking care of the soldiers[br]coming right off the battlefield. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 Very often, he would be the first[br]person they would see 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 when they opened[br]their eyes in the hospital. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 And they would look at him[br]as they were lying there, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 missing limbs, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and the first thing they would say[br]is, "When can I go back? 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 I left my brothers our there." 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 And Brian would have to say, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 "You're not going anywhere. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 You've already given enough, brother." 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 Brian is both a nurse and a soldier[br]whose seen combat. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 So that puts him in a unique position 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 to be able to relate to and help heal[br]the veterans in his care. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 This is Sister Stephen, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and she runs a nursing home[br]in Wisconsin called Villa Loretto. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 The entire circle of life[br]can be found under her roof. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 She grew up wishing they lived on a farm, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 so given the opportunity[br]to adopt local farm animals, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 she enthusiastically brings them in. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 And in the springtime, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 those animals have babies. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 So Sister Stephen uses those baby[br]ducks, goats and lambs 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 as animal therapy for the residents[br]at Villa Loretto, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 who sometimes can't[br]remember their own name, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 but they do rejoice[br]in the holding of a baby lamb. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 The day I was with Sister Stephen, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 I needed to take her away[br]from Villa Loretto 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 oto film part of her story. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 And before she left, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 she wnt into the room of a dying patient. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 She leaned over and she said, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 "I have to go away for the day, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 but if Jesus calls you, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 you go, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 you go straight home to Jesus." 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 I was standing there and thinking, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 this is the first time in my life 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 I witnessed that you could show[br]someone you love them completely 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 by letting go. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 We don't have to hold on so tightly. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 I saw more life rolled up[br]at Villa Loretto 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 than I have ever seen at any other time[br]at any other place in my life. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 We live in a complicated time[br]when it comes to our health care. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 It's easy to lose sight of the need[br]for quality of life, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 not just quantity of life. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 As new life-saving[br]technologies are created, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 we're going to have really[br]complicated decisions to make. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 These technologies often save lives, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 but they can also prolong pain[br]and the dying process. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 How in the world are we supposed[br]to navigate these waters? 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 We're going to need[br]all the help we can get. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 Nurses have a really unique[br]relationship with us 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 because of the time spent at bedside. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 During that time, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 a kind of emotional intimacy develops. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 This past summer, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 on August ninth, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 my father died of a heart attack. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 My mother was devasted, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and she couldn't imagine her world[br]without him in it. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 Four days later she fell, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 she broke her hip, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 she needed surgery, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and she found herself[br]fighting for her own life. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 Once again I found myself[br]on the receiving end 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 of the care of nurses -- 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 this time for my mom. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 My brother and my sister and I[br]stayed by her side 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 for the next three days in the ICU. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 And as we tried to make[br]the right decisions, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and follow my mother's wishes, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 we found that we were depending[br]upon the guidance of nurses. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 And once again, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 they didn't let us down. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 They had an amazing insight[br]in terms of how to care for my mom 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 in the last four days of her life. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 They brought her comfort[br]and relief from pain. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 They knew to encourage my sister and I[br]to put a pretty nightgown on my mom, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 long after it mattered to her, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 but it sure meant a lot to us. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 And they knew to come and wake me up[br]just in time for my mom's last breath. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 Then they knew how long[br]to leave me in the room 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 with my mother after she died. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 I have no idea how they know these things, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 but I do know that I am eternally grateful 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 that they've guided me once again. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 Thank you so very much. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 (Applause)