Recently, something told Cristina to leave for work early. She was covering a night shift in our ED and felt compelled to leave early. On her way to work, she witnessed a lady jump out of a moving vehicle. Cristina stopped immediately and found this young lady lying face down on the street in a pool of blood. Cristina jumped out of her vehicle and ran towards the girl lying on the ground.

According to the bystander who wrote to us, "This Ochsner employee was wearing blue scrubs and went immediately into helping and directing bystanders on what to do. I heard her calm the driver of the car, who was in panic mode due to the girl jumping out of his car, to get answers from him. She directed another bystander to call 911. She kept herself collected the entire time as if she was critically thinking every step through and handled the lifeless girl’s body so delicately." Knowing Cristina, I know that this description was absolutely on point.

The bystander also wrote, "Cristina stayed on her knees while assisting to the girl's needs until the police and ambulance arrived. The bystander continues, “I went to see how I could assist, and that's when I saw her Ochsner name badge that read 'Cristina.' She instructed me to place the 911 dispatcher on speaker as she spoke to them about the girl’s condition. I heard her say something about 'maintaining C spine and airway open.' Ochsner should be proud to have employees like her who will selflessly care for others without judgment and can work under intense pressure. I found out later that the injured girl was visiting my neighbor and suffered multiple facial fractures and a broken neck. I believe it was the quick thinking and actions taken by your employee that saved this girl's life."

Cristina is a dedicated, compassionate, confident nurse, and we at Ochsner are lucky to have her on our team!