Ashley Doughman
May 2022
Ashley
Doughman
,
RN
5 Telemetry
Lexington VA Health Care System
Lexington
,
KY
United States
When she is caring for a Veteran, she gives them her full attention. You can see in Ashley’s eyes that she not only wants to hear the Veteran but also to ensure the Veteran knows they are being heard.
Ashley is an amazing nurse with such a lovely attitude. She always has a smile on her face and is willing to help anyone at any time. She is the embodiment of all five I-CARE principles. She is a strong nurse that provides excellent care which provides confidence in her peers and Veterans. She provides strength in times of difficulty. Not only does she focus on serving Veterans, but she also focuses on serving her co-workers.
I have recently spoken with a new graduate nurse who was orientated by Ashley. He was very appreciative to have the experience with her and stated, "I learned so much from her". Ashley understands the VA is a team, and a team approach must be maintained to complete the mission. As a Clinical House Supervisor, I witnessed her provide respect for a veteran and the family during the veteran's end-of-life transition. She was a strong but caring shoulder for the family and the veteran.
When working on the unit there were three times that I have given her report on a veteran who was being appropriately transferred to her floor, but they were extremely busy and unavailable at the time to transfer the veteran. Ashley understands the VA is a team, and a team approach must be maintained to complete our mission. She offered to have a coworker watch her assignment on the med-surg floor and come to PCU for a warm bedside handoff. She proceeded to personally transfer the veteran to the floor. Once she was unable to perform the physical transfer herself. She delegated an appropriate aid to assist with the transfer from 2 to 5. This allowed the veteran to be at the appropriate level of care without a delay and opened a needed bed in the PCU.
Ashley is a diligent worker, from passing medications to assessing a patient, to pushing a wheelchair so a Veteran arrives on time for a procedure. When she is caring for a Veteran, she gives them her full attention. You can see in Ashley’s eyes that she not only wants to hear the Veteran but also to ensure the Veteran knows they are being heard. This is an extremely special trait to have in a nurse. I have witnessed her be an advocate for the veteran. When a veteran's health started to decompensate, she appropriately called a rapid response. She knew a multidisciplinary team approach was the best for the veteran. Her quick action prevented a medical emergency and improved the patient's outcome by advocating for him to be moved to a higher level of care that was needed at that time. She is a living example of I-CARE and our facility is blessed to have her part of the team.
I have recently spoken with a new graduate nurse who was orientated by Ashley. He was very appreciative to have the experience with her and stated, "I learned so much from her". Ashley understands the VA is a team, and a team approach must be maintained to complete the mission. As a Clinical House Supervisor, I witnessed her provide respect for a veteran and the family during the veteran's end-of-life transition. She was a strong but caring shoulder for the family and the veteran.
When working on the unit there were three times that I have given her report on a veteran who was being appropriately transferred to her floor, but they were extremely busy and unavailable at the time to transfer the veteran. Ashley understands the VA is a team, and a team approach must be maintained to complete our mission. She offered to have a coworker watch her assignment on the med-surg floor and come to PCU for a warm bedside handoff. She proceeded to personally transfer the veteran to the floor. Once she was unable to perform the physical transfer herself. She delegated an appropriate aid to assist with the transfer from 2 to 5. This allowed the veteran to be at the appropriate level of care without a delay and opened a needed bed in the PCU.
Ashley is a diligent worker, from passing medications to assessing a patient, to pushing a wheelchair so a Veteran arrives on time for a procedure. When she is caring for a Veteran, she gives them her full attention. You can see in Ashley’s eyes that she not only wants to hear the Veteran but also to ensure the Veteran knows they are being heard. This is an extremely special trait to have in a nurse. I have witnessed her be an advocate for the veteran. When a veteran's health started to decompensate, she appropriately called a rapid response. She knew a multidisciplinary team approach was the best for the veteran. Her quick action prevented a medical emergency and improved the patient's outcome by advocating for him to be moved to a higher level of care that was needed at that time. She is a living example of I-CARE and our facility is blessed to have her part of the team.