Saint Luke’s Health System ICU nurse Kristin Sollars has seen a lot during her 15 years of nursing, but nothing quite like the devastation that 2020 ushered in with the COVID-19 pandemic.
After 10 months of working tirelessly, week after week, to try and keep patients from losing their battles with the virus, Sollars had one of the best days in a long time last week when she joined the first health-care workers in the country to receive the much-awaited COVID-19 vaccine.
“I was ecstatic!” Sollars said. “Everything seemed to move so fast from the CDC approval to distribution at Saint Luke’s Health System. It’s a testament to how well teams have been working together to get this life-saving vaccine to those that need it.”
Her gratitude for the introduction of the vaccine has been magnified by the emotional roller coaster she, her coworkers, and her patients have been on since March.
“Each of us comes to the bedside with a unique set of strengths and drainers,” Sollars said. “There has been so much about this pandemic that has been heavy. The amount of death we have seen as a team is extremely deflating. We have worked tirelessly on patients for weeks and weeks to end up losing them. It’s been exhausting to be in so much PPE (personal protective equipment) every shift. Twelve-hour shifts are physically draining without layered masks and extremely hot gowns. It took us a while to get really good at getting in and out of our gear quickly and safely, and even more time to figure out how to cluster patient care so we were efficient in patient rooms.”
COVID’s challenges have accumulated as the virus continues to spread in record numbers, but for Sollars and her team at St. Luke’s, the most heart-breaking thing they see are patients whose families cannot be with them as they battle the virus, knowing they might never see them again.
“Our COVID patients are some of the sickest I’ve seen in my 15 years,” Sollars said. “They are working for every breath. The severity of their illness and our desperate work to keep them off of ventilators mean that we have really sick patients who are awake, unsedated, and scared. They are desperate for their loved ones, but know it isn’t safe for them to be in the same space. FaceTime calls have saved us, although nothing really compares to a hug from your family and friends.”
While she felt very well protected during the pandemic by always having a properly fitting N95 mask and eye protection, a level 1 mask, a head covering and protective gown, Sollars still had to face the fact that she was spending 12 to 13 hours a day, inches away from patients’ faces as they breathed out a deadly virus.
“Despite that protection, I worry that if some virus has penetrated my PPE that I could become a walking virus vector,” Sollars said. “So, I carefully wash my hands hundreds of times a day and immediately shower on my return home from every work shift.”
Never expecting the vaccine to be available so quickly, Sollars said it’s a testament to the hard-working scientists.
“Knowing that the quickest vaccine previously developed took five years of continuous work makes it even more astounding,” Sollars said. “I was hopeful that we would have a vaccine by the summer of 2021, having it in December is the best end-of-the-year gift we could have asked for.”
The possibility that vaccine availability will now give people a false sense of security is something health care workers will try to deflect. Sollars believes that getting access to a vaccine means going to a health care provider and she’s hopeful that those providers will make sure to educate patients on the need for continued masking and distancing until community spread is under control and herd immunity is implemented.
“Remaining vigilant will be so important as we do the work of vaccine distribution,” Sollars said. “Mask wearing and keeping at least six feet of distance between people from different households will be the only way to keep the virus in check as we do the six months of work to get vaccines into 80% of the population. It will be so important to stay focused on knowledgeable leaders, like Dr. Anthony Fauci, to give us the ‘all clear’ to lift mask mandates. Experts are predicting that getting to that point will likely take until summer/fall of 2021.”
While she was prepared for fatigue, low-grade fever and a headache upon receiving the vaccine, Sollars was excited that she didn’t experience anything but a few very mild side-effects, mostly consisting of a sore arm that extended up her neck.
“I know it’s possible to have more side-effects after my second dose, but after watching multiple family members and friends struggle with COVID-19, I would certainly take the expected vaccine side-effects over struggling with the virus,” Sollars said.
Last week, when she headed down to get the vaccine from ICU, where she was caring for a COVID patient, Sollars was crying.
“It felt like a ray of hope breaking into a really dark time,” Sollars said. “We have been struggling for so long with this virus. This vaccine is our first chance to start saving people long before they get to the point they need an ICU bed. I was thinking about my patients over the last several months and how I wished they would have had a chance at this vaccine. I was thinking about my co-workers and how this would offer them safety. And I was thinking about my friends and family that I’m missing so much. This vaccine is our chance to get back to hugging those we love.”
The journey through her 15 years as a nurse has been one she would never trade. She always knew she wanted to work in health care.
“Science was my favorite subject in elementary school, I took every science class my high school offered,” Sollars said. “When I left for college, I searched around for the right program and ultimately decided on psychology at Truman State University. At the time I thought maybe a path in social work or counseling would be a good fit for me, I knew I loved science, but I also loved people. I pivoted in 2004, four years after finishing my psychology degree, when I heard about a BSN (Bachelor of Science in Nursing) program I could complete in 12 months.
“I enrolled in the second class of Accelerated Track nursing students at William Jewell College and finished that program in 2005. In 2016 I finished a Master of Science in Nursing education. Nursing is the job that I was made for. It allows me to work in my energizers every shift. I love the challenge that comes with understanding my patient’s diagnosis. I love that it offers me the ability to be decisive and flexible for my patient, often serving as their surrogate voice in times of high stakes and crisis. Nursing is the ultimate Swiss knife degree, with one bachelor’s degree I can work anywhere in the country in clinics, hospitals and hospice settings. I can work with the entire life span from neonates to geriatrics. What I really love the most about nursing is that every day I go to the hospital and get to do really important work.”
For people who hope to work in the health-care profession, Sollars believes that before starting off on a nursing journey, shadowing a nurse is a great way to understand what is involved and expected.
“Spending a day with a nurse can show you just how diverse and challenging the work can be; you’ll want to make sure you are energized by this type of work,” Sollars said. “Don’t be scared to consider a second career in nursing. Many nurses stumble into the career a bit later in life. If you are feeling frustrated by work that doesn’t feel impactful or important, and if you love people and science, nursing may be just the right spot for you.”
Since helping others has been her ultimate goal as a nurse, she is proud to have been a part of such a noble and trusted profession in a time of need. Amidst the tragedy of losing so many people to COVID over the last 10 months, there have also been incredible moments of hope as Sollars and her co-workers have saved patients that they were certain they were going to lose.
“Those get seared in our memories as healthcare providers,” Sollars said. “I’ll always remember the 70- year-old who survived ECMO (extracorporeal membrane oxygenation replaces the function of the heart and lungs), the young guy in his 40’s who got back off the vent and home to his wife, and the pregnant mother who returned home to her small children. But if I’m honest, I’ll also remember some of the times we lost people, because death isn’t always ‘bad.’
“Sometimes I get to be there as families circle around their loved ones (virtually) and share with them what they will remember most about them. I’ve been there as grandchildren tell grandparents everything they’ve learned from them, I’ve been there when wives tell husbands what they will miss most about them. The human spirit is amazing. Even in those moments of loss there is a lot of love that permeates the situation and you can’t help but remember those moments as much as the others.”
Sollars is grateful to Saint Luke’s for the many opportunities they have given her to “stretch and grow as a nurse.” She’s held multiple leadership positions at the hospital and system level. “They paid for me to get a master’s degree and they have allowed me to work in a variety of positions, both caring for patients and educating nurses,” Sollars said. “They’ve helped me publish research and sent me around the country to learn from experts. I’ve had amazing leaders throughout my 13 years there. They’ve known me by name, and celebrated wins with me. They are constantly investing in me as an employee. There aren’t a lot of organizations you can say that about.”
As more and more of the vaccine is distributed a Morning Consult survey on behalf of National Geographic found that 30% of the respondents said they were unlikely to take the vaccine. For those who are nervous about the speed with which the vaccine was developed, Sollars said she would encourage people to talk about it with their trusted primary health-care provider.
“When we feel scared of something new, we can often alleviate that fear with facts,” Sollars said. “Physicians and nurses are specially trained to understand the science around vaccine technology and can certainly answer your questions. Anytime I’ve struggled with a health-based decision, I’ve sat down with my healthcare provider and always found the solutions I’m looking for.”
When the vaccine has been widely distributed and things return to normal, Sollars said, professionally, she will be excited to circle up with peers and just take a deep breath.
“Right now, we hit the ground sprinting every morning,” Sollars said. “Our work has a pretty frantic pace and getting back to a normal pace will be amazing. Personally, I haven’t hugged my parents or sister since March. I can’t wait to give them a big, tight hug.”