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by Sister Dolores Tringl, OLVM
 The pager vibrated at my waistline telling me there was a "red" trauma in the Emergency Department. Chaplains respond to the more serious traumas and a "red" is a very serious one. Answering the trauma page immediately, I found #1 trauma room filled with medical personnel from the departments of surgery, radiology plus the trauma team. The patient, a 41 year old man, rode his bicycle into a stopped vehicle. He was transported to University Medical Center by the Fire Department and pronounced dead shortly after arrival.
photo: Sister Dolores Tringl, OLVM
One of my roles at that time was to obtain information from the Fire Department paramedics about location of accident, name of patient, known telephone numbers, and other pertinent information. The paramedics were most gracious to me but had little information to give me except the location of the accident. I sensed in them that this was not an easy accident to take care of — perhaps because the age of the patient was around their age and some paramedics were much younger.
After the paramedics had cleaned up the gurney, I double-checked on any further information about the accident. Then I shared with them that I planned to go back into the trauma room and pray over the deceased patient. I told them that I usually wait until most of the staff are gone from the room and then pray aloud close to the ear of the patient. My reason for praying aloud is that it is often said that the sense of hearing was the last sense to leave the body.
As I turned away from the Fire Department staff to enter the trauma room, I heard one of the paramedics say, "Chaplain, give us a blessing!" I wasn't quite sure I heard what he said, but as I faced him, I saw three of them with arms around each others' waist and one said again, "Chaplain, give us a blessing!" followed by an invitation to the other Fire Department staff. Before me were six persons, joined arms  around the waist, hats in their hands, heads bowed. God was with me as I prayed in thanksgiving to God for the gift that was theirs to bring the injured and sick to our hospital for the help we give, to venture into difficult situations to rescue people who are created by God. Then, I asked God to continue to give them the desire and courage to help God's people. I blessed them in a Christian manner but said that for those who are not Christian, may the blessing of the God of their religion be with them.
photo: Sr. Dolores Tringl, chaplain at University Medical Center in Tucson, tells the Chaplain Supervisor about her unique experience of the paramedics asking for prayer for themselves.
I thanked them for the gift they had given me to be with them in prayer and blessing. Then I entered the trauma room and prayed beside the 41 year old man, asking God to grant him peace and joy as his spirit left his body.
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