Many Cries, One Mission: No shame. No names. No blame

Many Cries, One Mission:

No shame. No names. No blame.

Nurses are trained to deal with various patient outcomes and sometimes, even tragic situations. However, San Antonio Community Hospital’s nurses were faced with a tragic situation that was totally preventable…the death of a child who had been discarded by a young mother because she didn’t know about the Safe Surrender Law. Distraught and outraged, these nurses came together to find a solution. Their unique approach is making a difference by reaching thousands of young women who were unaware that they could safely surrender their unwanted newborn.

The Safe Surrender Law was enacted six years ago, but the majority of the educational outreach was directed toward service providers, not the young women who needed to know how to exercise this option. Babies continued to die; young women continued to be prosecuted.

The nurses came together to brainstorm a solution, directed not at adults, but toward young women. The concept of the “No shame. No names. No blame.” DVD by teens for teens was born. Film students from Pacific Union College in Angwin, California joined the Safe Surrender Team to create a public educational tool. Less than six months later, the DVD was ready for distribution.

Over 200 legislators, educators, and community leaders were in attendance at the premiere in October 2006. Since then, over 3,000 DVDs and posters have been distributed, reaching 60,000 people throughout the State of California. This tool has been enthusiastically received by schools, since the state requires the Safe Surrender Law to be included as part of school curriculums. In addition to the DVD, a website for more information is available. Young women can also talk directly to a nurse in the maternal child department. The hospital has received questions and calls from across the state, and has even been contacted by national organizations who are interested in the DVD.

The greatest impact of this video has been its ability to touch hearts. It shows young women, speaking from their hearts, sharing the provisions of the law, and the positive outcomes for both mother and child. It speaks to the fact that Safe Surrender saves not only the life of the baby, but also saves the life of the mother. The focus is healthy life choices. Pregnancy is not the end of the mother’s life. They have choices and there are people who care about them and can help direct them to safer alternatives that will have positive long-term outcomes.

The saturation of the message throughout the schools is apparent; young women know about Safe Surrender and they are talking about it. The nurses involved in this project have made a difference. They wanted to be a voice for all abandoned babies who never made it into the world. Everyone hears these stories in the news, but somehow remain detached from it. The nurses felt that if they could put a face on these children they would make an impact…and they have.