Helping Hands in the CICU

By Debra Scheuerman     

Nicole Adcock grew up on a cattle ranch in Dustin, OK. A town with no traffic light or 4-way-stop, it covers a total area of .6 square miles. Working as a nurse in the Cardiac Intensive Care Unit (CICU) at Saint Francis Hospital can be a difficult job, but Adcock tries to find the good in all situations.

Growing up on her family’s ranch she always wanted to become a veterinarian. Her grandmother and cousins are all nurses and when looking at the long road of veterinarian school ahead of her, she decided against the extra years of school and became a nurse instead. She often visits home to help with the animals on the ranch to fulfill her love of the outdoors.  

Her favorite part of working in the CICU is being able to help others and see the impact. She loves to “pray and speak life over her patients” and talk with them about "the one thing that can truly help" them, which is Christ. Having patients who are “open and receptive to Christ” is something she looks forward to.

She explained to me that sometimes she is “the only one who is honest with patients about their condition” and their possible life after being in the CICU. “Being honest with them helps them build their trust in me and they feel like they have a friend on their side”, Adcock said.

While Adcock, and everyone working in the CICU, does everything they can to help patients on their road to recovery sometimes they lose their battles. “The hardest part about this job is the calls to family after a patient has passed, having to tell them we did everything we could and it wasn’t enough will never get any easier”.

After talking to Adcock, even for a brief time, you can feel her warmth and desire to help others. She is someone I would want on my side if I were battling for my life in the CICU.