A nurse offers perspective on paid family leave

In a world that never stops, where time rushes past us, there are moments when life demands our undivided attention. These are the moments when a loved one faces the end of their journey, and it is our privilege and responsibility to stand by their side. As a hospice nurse, I am acutely aware of the significance of these moments. I am also acutely aware of the urgent need for paid family and medical leave in our state.

Hospice care is a unique field, where we not only provide medical support but also offer emotional comfort and dignity to patients and their families during the most challenging moments of their lives. Death, a subject often seen as depressing, becomes a sacred transition, and our duty is to make it as peaceful and meaningful as possible.

The year 2020 brought a unique challenge that underscored the pressing need for paid family and medical leave. The coronavirus pandemic struck, and I witnessed the devastating impact it had on our patients and their families. One nursing home I visited was forced to convert an entire wing into a COVID-19 unit due to the high number of cases. Tragically, they experienced a staggering 90% mortality rate among COVID-19 patients. Many of these patients were under my care.

I recall the heart-wrenching moments of donning full protective gear to spend hours helping patients communicate with their distant families via video calls. I vividly remember guiding a middle-school-aged grandchild through a conversation with their unresponsive grandmother.

And later, I helped a daughter serenade her parents, both COVID-19 patients, through a video call. These were emotional farewells, as all three patients died within 24 hours. Despite the pain, our team did everything possible to ensure their comfort and dignity, a testament to the compassion that drives hospice care.

In the midst of these profound experiences, I also witnessed a persistent challenge faced by families: financial burden. Acceptance of a loved one’s impending death is difficult, but the added strain of figuring out how to financially cope exacerbates the situation. Families grapple with tough decisions like whether they can afford to take time off work or hire outside help.

I worked with a family in Albuquerque where the mother was actively dying, and her daughter was her primary caregiver. The daughter faced daily torment, torn between her mother’s care and the fear of losing her job if she took too much time off work. She also worried about feeding her children. The absence of paid leave forced her into an impossible situation, one that too many families in our state face daily.

Paid family and medical leave offers a solution to this heart-wrenching dilemma. It ensures job security for caregivers, allowing them to provide care to their loved ones without sacrificing their livelihoods. It enables parents to care for their family members without jeopardizing their children’s well-being. Most importantly, it provides comfort to patients, knowing their loved ones can care for them without the added burden of financial stress.

New Mexico cannot afford to wait any longer. I call upon our lawmakers to prioritize the passage of Paid Family and Medical Leave Act.