At the bedside, an ICU nurse carries lessons from home

ORANGE CITY, Fla. — The patient was young, critically ill and struggling to understand how quickly her life had changed.

In the intensive care unit at AdventHealth Fish Memorial, an autoimmune illness had left her swollen, short of breath and dependent on others in ways she had never known.

ICU nurse Kaleigh Hulsman recognized the fear.

She had seen it before. Not in a hospital, but at home.

When Hulsman first met the patient, she offered something simple: a warm foot soak with Epsom salt and lavender. It was not part of a treatment plan. It was a gesture.

For the patient, it brought relief. For Hulsman, it brought back memories of caring for her father.

Years earlier, she had helped her father through a serious illness that took away his strength and independence. Tasks most people take for granted suddenly became difficult. He could not reach his feet or manage basic care on his own.

Her father had been diagnosed with granulomatosis with polyangiitis, a rare disease that causes inflammation in blood vessels. His condition worsened quickly, leading to intensive care, life support and a double lung transplant.

“I remember thinking how frustrating it must feel to need help with something so basic,” Hulsman said.

Weeks after the transplant, doctors found lung cancer.

The family entered another stretch of treatment and uncertainty. During that time, Hulsman helped with daily care in quiet, practical ways.

“Being on the other side of the bed changed everything for me,” she said. “It makes you notice the things people lose first, and the small ways you can help give some of that back.”

Hulsman has worked in the ICU at AdventHealth Fish Memorial since 2019, but her connection to nursing goes back much further.

Her grandmother, Mary Busbee, spent nearly four decades as at AdventHealth Apopka most of that time in the emergency department. Hulsman grew up watching her leave for shifts and listening to stories about her work.

Busbee said she saw those same instincts in her granddaughter early on.

“Even as a child, she always wanted to be the one helping others,” Busbee said.

When it came time to choose her own path, Hulsman found herself drawn to the work she had seen modeled for years. Nursing offered a way to help others in the same spirit she had long admired in her grandmother.

After earning her associate degree at Seminole State College, Hulsman continued her education at AdventHealth University. She also completed clinical rotations and practicum at AdventHealth Orlando and worked there briefly after graduating in 2018.

Still, she said nothing prepared her for caring for her own father, who would become a patient on the same unit where she was working.

“You can study a lot of things,” she said. “But living it is different.”

That experience continues to shape how she connects with patients, especially those facing a sudden loss of independence.

In critical care, where decisions move quickly, Hulsman said it can be easy to focus only on what needs to be fixed, but she tries to pause and also consider what might bring comfort.

At AdventHealth, that kind of care is not unusual. It reflects a culture shaped over generations of nurses who see their work as more than a series of tasks.

Michele Johnson, chief nursing officer at AdventHealth Fish Memorial, said Hulsman’s story reflects the kind of culture the hospital works intentionally to build.

“Clinical excellence will always matter, but so does human connection,” Johnson said. “We want nurses to know their voice matters, their compassion matters and the small acts of care are often what patients remember most.”

Johnson noted that AdventHealth Fish Memorial has the lowest clinical turnover within the AdventHealth’s East Florida Division, which serves communities across eight hospitals in Flagler, north Lake, Sumter and Volusia counties. The hospital has also earned the Pathway to Excellence designation, which recognizes nursing engagement and professional practice.

For Hulsman, it comes back to what she learned long before she ever stepped into a hospital.

“You don’t forget what it feels like to sit in that chair as a family member,” she said. “It changes how you care for people.”