“We love Emma, and we are forever thankful for her”

By Maureen Gilmer, Riley Children’s Health senior writer, mgilmer1@iuhealth.org

Emma Yarbrough didn’t know five years ago how much a career in the NICU at Riley Hospital for Children would mean to her.

Originally leaning toward a nursing role in labor and delivery, she nonetheless interviewed for a job in the Riley NICU and fell in love.

“I was just in awe of the fact that you could do higher acuity ICU-level care on these miniature miracle baby bodies,” she said. “It’s a nice blend of higher acuity on tiny babies and bonding with parents and families. I really like that relationship part you can build.”

Her nursing skills, compassion and relationship-building are why she was nominated for and recently received the DAISY award for outstanding care.

Abbie Pyle and her husband, Spencer, know firsthand what Yarbrough brings to her job. They experienced it night in and night out for five months when their daughter, Paige, was in the NICU.

“During our time at Riley, Emma took on many roles for our family. She was our daughter's nurse, our rock, our friend, and later became family,” Abbie Pyle wrote in her nomination. “Emma was a light in some of our darkest times in the NICU.”

Yarbrough, who works the night shift, was always up for a craft project, Pyle said, including a unit-wide craft during the Indiana State Fair that used footprints from dozens of babies to make a giant fair food banner to hang over the NICU receptionist desk.

Whether joining Paige’s parents for care conferences or comforting them amid difficult news, Yarbrough, who bonded with the couple over their Southern Indiana roots, became a lifeline, even walking them up to the PICU, where Paige was transferred after undergoing surgery.

“The NICU is a pretty daunting place to be,” Yarbrough said. “My goal is to make it feel a little bit homier. We fell into a routine over the first couple of weeks, and I learned more about their family. I got to know Paige’s feisty, spunky personality.”

Even though Paige has moved on to the PICU, Yarbrough occasionally checks in on the 9-month-old, recently showing off her DAISY award to Paige and her parents.

Yarbrough, married to her high school sweetheart, Zach, said it’s the relationships she builds and the team around her that give her the strength to get through the hard days.

“People don’t always see the work nurses do day in and day out, so recognition like this is something I’ll treasure forever – that people recognize the true love, blood, sweat and tears you put into these little babies.”

And she celebrates the little wins, the tiny milestones in her patients’ young lives, whether that be opening their eyes for the first time or getting to be held by their mom and dad.

“We celebrate these baby steps as if they are huge life goals,” she said.

At least one young mom will never forget the impact Yarbrough had on her little family during their time in the NICU.

“We love Emma,” Pyle said, “and we are forever thankful for her.”

Nominate a nurse who exemplifies excellent clinical skills and compassionate care here.

Photos submitted and by Mike Dickbernd, IU Health visual journalist, mdickbernd@iuhealth.org