Danielle Konopka, RN

I am nominating Danielle, an outstanding Registered Nurse, for her immediate, decisive Advocacy and Commitment to patient safety. Her level of professional response ensured that a critical, life-threatening finding led to the necessary, lifesaving intervention. I approached Danielle, the oncoming night shift RN, with a critical EKG showing a Second-Degree Type 2 heart block on a Veteran. The Veteran's telemetry monitor had been discontinued, and he was scheduled for discharge the next morning. Although the Veteran was not her assigned patient, Danielle immediately displayed Commitment and took full ownership of the critical situation. She quickly verified the lack of a cardiology consultation in the chart and recognized the finding as a high-priority, life-threatening issue that demanded immediate action.

Recognizing the extreme risk- a fatal heart block combined with a planned discharge and no monitoring. Danielle acted with the highest professional integrity and urgency. She immediately contacted the MOD to formally raise the critical alert and requested an urgent review of the EKG. She also placed an alert note in the Veteran's chart for the Medical Doctor. Danielle's swift and determined actions were the pivotal step that saved this Veteran's life. Her action forced the necessary medical review, leading to the patient receiving an echocardiogram, confirming the finding, and subsequently being scheduled for a life-saving pacemaker insertion a few days later. Without Danielle's willingness to advocate and disrupt the discharge plan, this Veteran would have been sent home with a fatal heart condition. Danielle's actions show just how much she cares for the Veterans we serve.