I responded to a code blue called outside of building 41 near the water tower. When I arrived, I found a Veteran lying in a supine position with Ms. Elizabeth Saltigerald in a crouched position talking to the Veteran who was responsive. The Veteran was being instructed by Ms. Saltigerald not to move as apparently, he had fallen, striking his head. She instructed him that he needed to be fitted for a neck brace before moving due to a risk of a spinal injury. She continued to talk with the Veteran assessing his condition while she instructed others to make sure that the code blue team would bring the neck brace and gurney. Ms. Saltigerald was performing her nursing duty in an exemplary manner. However, her clinical acumen is not why I have nominated her for a DAISY Award.
That reason is that during the twenty or so minutes that I was at the location where the veteran lay on the ground, she never got up from her crouching position or failed to maintain eye contact with the veteran. She was also the only VA employee of the twenty or so employees (including myself) that did not talk over the Veteran but through and for the veteran. She treated the Veteran who was probably embarrassed and a little scared like I would want someone to treat my loved one.
Ms. Saltigerald remained as close as she could to his eye level and never took her eyes off him. She smiled and kept him calm while making sure that he was going to receive the care he needed. Her level of care and compassion was such that a casual observer to the scene would not have been able to tell that the Veteran was not her loved one. She treated him like he was family to her while at the same time making sure that he received the care that he needed.
"The secret to the care of the patient is in caring for the patient," Ms. Saltigerald demonstrated this exceeded all the criteria for the DAISY Award.