Waiting for the Caring Moment

Last night the hubby and I had a Saturday night date....pizza and a movie. We finally got to watch Captain Phillips...the movie about the tanker that was captured by Somalian pirates and its captain who was held hostage. Not a bad movie, pretty good, in fact. I did my usual, watching with one eye while the other eye kept track of my handiwork (which was crocheting a kippah for my Pomegranate Guild chapter).
I half followed along until the captain was rescued by the US Navy and safe aboard ship. He was in the sick bay and being examined by the nurse. The nurse's actions stopped me in mid-stitch. She was efficient, very smart, doing what she should do....except she was too efficient. The captain was just rescued and shaken up splattered with blood and brains from his captors. Every time she touched him he jumped. She very efficiently asked him if he was in pain, told him she was putting a sensor on his finger to measure his oxygenation....all the right things, but it was without caring. It wasn't until he asked her if the blood on him was his that she had any comfort or caring to her voice. She was well into the exam before she reached her caring moment.
It made me wonder if during the course of the day if I get so caught up in "getting it right" or being efficient that I delay the caring moment a patient needs. It also made me promise to myself to be sure to get into the caring moment as soon as possible. A soft voice and a kind word goes far, especially if the patient experienced a traumatic event....