Dream job at Children's pays off for recent grad
Tuesday, April 21, 2009 9:34 AM EDT

Patient Carlyle Rollins (left) and her friend, nurse Megan Brischler reunited last week at a special luncheon to raise funds for Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta.

By Conswella C. Bennett
For The Crier

Like most recent college graduates, Megan Brischler was thrilled to land her dream job soon after graduating from the University of Alabama in December 2007, but she never dreamed that she would come away with more than job satisfaction.

She put her pediatric nursing degree to use by landing a job at the only hospital she had imagined herself working - Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta at Scottish Rite last February.

“I knew I was going to work at Children’s Healthcare,” Brischler said with a knowing smile. “I had a bunch of friends and family who work there, and I heard it was the place to be for pediatric nursing.”

And while the job can be heartbreaking and stressful, Brischler describing her career added, that the emotional whirlwind of a career brings her joy when she is able to help sick children.

After only five months on the job, while working the night shift from 7 p.m. until 7 a.m., Brischler, who had crossed paths with a number of children with various degrees of illnesses and injuries during their short stays met a patient who would become special -Carlyle Rollins.

Brischler, a native of Gwinnett County who calls Dunwoody home, met nine-year-old Carlyle, the daughter of Danielle and Glen Rollins, of Atlanta in July. Carlyle’s leg was crushed just below the knee after an accident on a go-cart. After spending time in the pediatric intensive care unit, Carlyle was placed on the second floor where she met Brischler.

“I was her night nurse,” Brischler recalled. After seeing each other during her work nights, the two quickly formed a special bond. The chemistry was so noticeable that Brischler said co-workers described their relationship as ‘older sister, younger sister’.

The two shared a passion for the American Girl dolls and often during her breaks Brischler would spend time with Carlyle. The two would sometimes spend time in Carlyle’s bed playing with the popular dolls and their accessories or simply watching television.

For Danielle Rollins, who watched her daughter fight through the near-death experience and multiple surgeries and procedures - Brischler and the other nurses and doctors had become like a family. Carlyle would spend a total of three months in Children’s hospital, both Scottish Rite and later, Egleston, where she was placed on a ventilator after suffering from a secondary infection.

Danielle said it was something special about Brischler, who she described as “young and very beautiful. They hit it off.”

Every night she came to work, Danielle said Brischler was always, “so chipper. She’s just a sweet person.”

Every evening, Carlyle said she eagerly checked the board to see if Brischler was on the schedule. “She was just nice,” Carlyle said of Brischler who she describes as ‘Megan, my very, very special nurse friend.”

It was a difficult three months for the Rollins family, Danielle said she thought of times when she wondered if she would leave the hospital with her only daughter alive, and praised the work of the staff at Children’s where the family still visits for check ups and treatments. Carlyle now has an external fixature on the leg that they once thought would have to be amputated. She has two more surgeries to undergo.

Through it all, Carlyle and Brischler grew closer. And when Carlyle had some rough nights, Brischler was there to help comfort and reassure her.

When Carlyle had to return to the intensive care unit, Brischler visited during her work breaks. And, when Carlyle was transported to Egleston, Brischler visited her there.

“Some of the time, she didn’t know I was there,” Brischler recalled. Like Carlyle’s parents, Brischler was happy when Carlyle was released from Egleston to her home. “She went from a wheelchair to a walker and now she can walk,” she said. “She has this amazing spirit, and I’m proud of her accomplishments.”

The two stay in contact via email, cell phone text messaging and every few months they get together for a girl’s day outing. A few weeks ago, they went to Build-A-Bear Workshop and had lunch at the American Girl Bistro.

“Bad things happen and places can be as nice as you want them to be, but it’s the people that make them special,” Danielle Rollins said of Children’s. “You can pay someone to do a job, but you can’t pay someone to love the job. It’s more than a calling,” she said of Brischler and the Children’s staff passion as Carlyle was undergoing physical therapy with Linda Weaver, a Children’s therapist.

Weaver agreed. “Everybody who works at Children’s loves what they are doing.”

Although nursing can be a hectic and stressful career, Brischler said, “It’s worth it. Nursing school is extremely hard, but it’s definitely worth it in the end. It’s an emotional career but you get so many rewards…the biggest reward is helping people.”

Carlyle got to spend time with her special nurse last Wednesday at a second annual luncheon that will be held at Neiman Marcus. All proceeds benefited Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. The Rollins invited Brischler to be their guest at the sold-out event. The luncheon was hosted by four co-chairs—Stephanie Blank, Danielle Rollins, Ginny Brewer and Liz Lazarus—and featured a fashion show from celebrity wedding designer Lela Rose.

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