Nurses Enter The Room Of A Hospitalized 3-Year-Old Girl. Then This Unexpected Thing Happened
“Nurses enter the room of a hospitalized three-year-old girl, then this unexpected thing happened. Hospital stays are usually not fun at all. You watch the clock tick away and simply count down the days until you can leave again. But when these nurses entered the room of a three-year-old girl, they surprised her with something so unexpected that you probably forgot all about whereabouts for at least a couple of seconds. This is what happened.
This is Madison Austin. She was born with a neuronal migration disorder or NMD. NMD is an umbrella term given to several conditions. It refers to a group of birth defects caused by the abnormal migration of neurons in the developing brain and nervous system. Madison’s condition affects her brain and muscle development, and due to breathing issues related to her ailment, she is forced to breathe with the help of a tracheostomy too.
One day, little Madison’s oxygen levels dropped severely, and she began having seizures. She was admitted to the hospital, where she was diagnosed with the flu, rhinovirus, and three different infections. The doctors advised that it could take up to a month for her lungs to get back to normal, said Madison’s mom, Krista Austin.
Madison had been staying at the hospital for several weeks already, so as you can guess, she would sometimes get a little bored. But one day, she came across a video on her mom’s iPad that truly caught her attention. It was the Hokey Pokey dance, and Madison immediately fell in love with the catchy tune.
After all that Madison has been through in her life, she is the happiest, funniest, spunkiest, most polite child ever, Krista said. Ever since she watched the Hokey Pokey video, she was hooked on it and watched it multiple times.
After watching the video numerous times and becoming slightly obsessed with the funny dancing, little Madison shared her love for the Hokey Pokey with her nurses. She asked them to come to a hospital room for a Hokey Pokey party. The nurses realized this was an opportunity they simply couldn’t pass up.
Nurse Natalie Serra began organizing the party, and she wanted to use it as a way to lift the young patient’s spirits. So, in an attempt to offer Madison a truly special dance party, Nurse Natalie began recruiting nurses and therapists to perform the song.
An adorable video shows how a couple of nurses went above and beyond to bring a smile to Madison’s face. With several stuffed animals in attendance, Madison sat up in bed and danced and clapped along as five nurses showcased their best moves right in front of her bed.
When you see Madison’s facial expression, it looks like she had a ball. And isn’t that what it’s all about? Sofia Petika.
When this girl finally got sent home after cancer treatment, she could have never expected what was about to unfold. Twelve-year-old Sofia was diagnosed with scoliosis as a small child. She was eventually treated with a brace, which she had to wear 23 hours a day. But as her back pain worsened, she finally had to be brought back to the hospital for an additional checkup.
There, an MRI revealed that she had a large tumor growing on her spinal cord, and she was immediately referred to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Tennessee, a landlocked state in the south of the United States. The hospital is a pediatric treatment and research facility that focuses on children’s catastrophic diseases, particularly leukemia and other cancers.
Once Sofia arrived at the hospital, a major surgery was performed to remove the tumor. But a year later, tests revealed that tumors had returned to her spinal cord. Her physicians at St. Jude decided that radiation was the best option, and that proton therapy was the optimal way to deliver that treatment. Using proton therapy would lead to decreased radiation to the esophagus, lungs, and chest, and they considered this to be a better option than traditional x-ray radiation for children such as Sofia who have a long life ahead of them.
However, keeping in mind that little Sofia is from Louisiana, they did not want to send her all the way to Tennessee again. Instead, they decided on proton therapy at Willis Knighton Hospital in Northwest Louisiana. This way, Sofia could remain close to home while receiving the treatment.
Like many 12-year-olds, Sofia loves to dance, and she had already enthusiastically told several hospital staff members how much she likes one dance in particular: the Nae Nae. So, to cheer her up, Daniel Spear, a nurse at Willis Knighton Cancer Center, told her he would learn the dance so he could perform it with her on her last day.
Little did Sofia know a big surprise was awaiting her. Daniel and his colleagues wanted to send the little girl off in a way they knew she would appreciate. So, when Sofia was in the midst of her treatments, a whole group of other staff members began working on their moves.
Then, the big day finally came. Sofia had completed a treatment with advanced proton therapy. The staff gathered together, and out of nowhere, she was surprised flash mob style. Several staff members had been preparing a special choreographed flash mob performance, and Sofia beamed in surprise while she danced along to the famous summer hit.
She was just overwhelmed and really surprised, and it was overwhelming for me and my husband, Sofia’s mother, Julie Petika, said, recalling the event. We are happy that they did it for her and that it is making so many other people feel good.
The special flash mob video got posted on YouTube, and it didn’t take long before it went viral. In less than a week, it was viewed more than half a million times, and by now, it has garnered almost 5 million views.
People from all over the world had kind messages to share, and it seems like it truly warmed everyone’s heart. But how was little Sofia dealing with all this attention? Speaking about the unusual event, Sofia’s mom said the following:
Sofia loves that song, and she has a real bubbly, magnetic personality. She is excited, but she thinks the spotlight should be on Daniel and the crew there. They are the ones that did something special for her.
Whether you like this song or not, the hospital staff truly sent this girl off in style with their surprise Nae Nae dance, and they surely gave the little girl a day she will never forget.
Abby While an unexpected flash mob is already quite special, this little girl took her cheering up gift to a whole other level. Little Abby was battling leukemia, and all week long, she had been telling her mother that she wanted to get married to her favorite nurse, Matt Hickling.
Wanted to make her little girl’s dream come true, her mom told Matt of Abby’s unusual wish, and soon enough, she received the text back from the nurse saying, ‘We are planning a wedding tomorrow.’ In less than 24 hours, the Melody Center at Albany Medical Center in New York pulled off a wedding ceremony complete with a wedding dress, cake, a rose petal aisle, and nurses as bridesmaids.
The bride wore a white dress in black leggings, and her prince charming got dressed up in a tuxedo T-shirt and scrubs. And according to little Abby, it was the best day ever.
Weddings aren’t often held at the hospital, but when this four-year-old girl asked to marry the man of her dreams, hospital staff knew they couldn’t let her down.
Hospital Choir But kids are not the only ones who need some cheering up every now and then. Hospital staff can also use an occasional pick-me-up, and that became even more clear in the past two years when hospital staff were working around the clock, 24/7, to help treat COVID patients.
When the coronavirus pandemic first unfolded worldwide in 2020, a special group of hospital staff decided to take a moment to make their colleagues smile. They were all part of a choir and had been singing together for over a year. And to show their appreciation for their uber-work colleagues, they organized a little surprise.
In the heartwarming clip, you see the choir gather together on the steps of the hospital. Their co-workers have all come to take a look and are enjoying a rare moment of peace to witness what’s about to unfold.
Can you guess what happened next? Nothing less than a surprise performance of ‘I’ll Be There,’ originally released by Bobby Darin in 1960. The song became an instant hit with music fans thanks to its beautiful harmonies and uplifting lyrics, such as, ‘You’ll never be alone. I’ll be there for you.’
To round off the musical performance, the choir sent out a powerful reminder to the British public, singing the words, ‘Stay at home, stay at home.’ What an unusual performance, and what makes it even more interesting is that the idea comes from yet another special performance.
You see, the choir had been inspired by another opera-singing doctor who had decided to bring some joy to fellow staff on the front line. In another beautiful moment of solidarity, Royal Academy of Music opera student Alex Aldrin studied medicine at the University of Birmingham and worked at the Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel.
And during the unprecedented time for hospitals across the globe, he was one of many courageous staff members who returned to the front line amidst a lot of uncertainty. In a rare moment of peace for his fellow colleagues, Alex treated his co-workers to a rousing rendition of Puccini’s aria ‘Nessun Dorma.’
Translated into English, that means ‘None shall sleep.’ A fellow staff member posted the performance to Twitter, saying, ‘One of our senior house officers today is Alex, who is also an opera singer returning to the front line during the COVID outbreak. He is treating the team to some shows during quieter periods. Bravo!’
As you can probably guess, it didn’t take long before the video garnered thousands of likes. When was the last time you received such an uplifting surprise, be it at the hospital or somewhere else? Share it in the comments. I would love to hear more about your experiences.
