Brooke is always a very patient-oriented nurse, but tonight in MTC she went above and beyond. There was a patient in trauma who had a severe head injury. The patient arrived close to shift change at 1830.
When the night shift took over care, it was known that the patient, a 17-year-old male, had a traumatic brain injury that he would never recover from. The family, Spanish speaking only, was in the waiting room. There were no in-person translators due to COVID-19. Neuro and trauma were looking at scans and needed to develop a plan of care before gathering with the family.
Brooke, who is fluent in Spanish, stayed after her shift for an hour to help disclose to the family. If Brooke was not so thoughtful, the trauma team would have had to use a phone or iPad to communicate. Brooke unknowingly changed this process for the family. Having a personal conversation makes the traumatic process slightly better.