Anthony has always been an incredibly helpful AOD, but there is one day in particular where my unit encountered a problem that could have been tragic, had it not been for Anthony's dedication to excellence in patient care.
Our ICU has many neurological patients who require EVDs or drains from patients' brains to prevent increased intracranial pressure. To measure the intracranial pressure, or ICP, we use a device that includes a leveled laser, that can "zero" or calibrate the drain. During a very busy weekend day, my unit was extremely busy, working with limited staff and very ill patients. Housewide, we were down to our last EVD laser, and the batteries on it died mid-shift. After calling central supply, Anthony quickly got in touch with the other UPMC facilities in the Pittsburgh area, his boss, the unit directors, and the head of central supply to find out where we could obtain these batteries, especially because it was a weekend. After a very long extensive search, there were no batteries to be found, and our back up instrument, which is a meter stick with a level measurement was missing. Neurosurgery was concerned we weren't able to obtain an ICP on one patient, in particular, since we had just made a change in her EVD settings, and without an ICP we couldn't determine if the patient was tolerating this change well. The nurses did not have a whole lot of extra time to be searching for or troubleshooting this very necessary equipment. Anthony jumped in, offering to help however he could, but also ran up the street to a CVS store to obtain the needed batteries to operate this EVD laser and, without hesitation, paid for the batteries at his own expense.
Because of his actions and help, we were able to properly evaluate and treat the patient with an EVD. Anthony truly displayed that he is all around a team player, and an essential member of the nursing staff here at Mercy. Without his help and quick critical thinking, the outcome on this day could have been very unfortunate.