Art Inspired by Life: The Healing Hands of ICU

Story by Catherine Morris

Passersby in the ICU at Kettering Health’s Soin Medical Center may notice artwork hanging on the wall. A painting of a colorful tree that is—at a closer look—made of something unique: medication bottlecaps.

A small plaque at the bottom notes that the art is called “The Healing Hands of ICU.” What many may not realize is the art was created by someone in that same unit: Molly Brodess, charge nurse leader.

A Journey to ICU

A hospital stay at a young age motivated Molly to find a career where she could help others heal. She started as a nursing assistant in 2012, then worked her way to becoming a nurse.

“Once I was a nurse, I felt this was my calling. Knowing that I’ve been in their seat before and being in that bed, I can easily relate to them, saying, ‘I want to make you feel better. I promise I will do my best, and then you will be home with your loved ones.’”

Her shift to the ICU setting also brought a change in perspective.

“In the ICU, patients are really sick. You see a patient at their lowest, you actually see them healing and growing, and then you can see when they’re about to go home and be back with their loved ones.

“So that’s where my inspiration came from.”

Life Inspires Art

In her day-to-day, Molly witnesses the breadth of a patient’s experience in the hospital—and she aimed to capture that in her artwork.

“The tree itself is gray and white, and that’s to represent the patient at their lowest, when they don’t have much of a glimmer of hope. At the bottom, I have different representation of all the hands that have touched the patient during their stay in the hospital, not just the ICU. And then on the tree itself is all the blooms of the patient growing and blossoming before they get discharged and going back home.”

The different hands and medicines shown in the artwork were an intentional choice. With so many team members supporting each patient, Molly wanted to represent not only her perspective as a nurse but also the expertise of others who serve alongside her.

“Being in the ICU, you see so much more medication being given to patients. One eye-opening experience was my first time seeing a code. A person’s heart stopped, and you had to give lifesaving medications. So, I have epinephrine to help get that heart started again.”

Bicarb. DVT prophylaxis. Heparin. Antibiotics. Steroids. Dialysis medicines. CRRT medication bags. And what she calls “Christmas trees”—what respiratory staff hook up to patients’ nasal cannula. All told, Molly estimates the artwork features hundreds of types of medications and well over 1,000 individual caps.

Many Teams, One Goal

Molly’s main takeaway from her work with different teams? Every person can make a difference.

“It doesn’t matter if you are on Med Surg or the Intermediate Care Unit or in the ICU; each nurse makes a difference in that patient’s life.”

As it turns out, healing hands can be found in ICU and beyond.