Last night was a very busy night in the ED. I believe we had more than 75 patients registered at one time; a full unit, with 40 or more in the waiting room and EMS still bringing more in. There were multiple difficult patients. Yet with all the movement happening, working non-stop with bed control, communicating with other unit charge nurses, calming our patients and their family members, our Charge Nurse Cynthia still kept it together and displayed what this institution is known for: putting patients first and teamwork!
Cynthia somehow managed to take the time to help move beds, escort patients to different areas, coordinate with physicians and helped relieve RNs when they became overwhelmed. She, in fact, did take a few patients on during all of this, because they were very ill, and she didn't want them waiting for care. This kind of selfless dedication to the quality of care is something we should all strive to be more like. The fact that she did so with a smile and great attitude only added to make things better. If it weren't for Cynthia working so tirelessly, putting patients first and being aware of the staffs' situations, things could have gone very differently.