Janel Patek, BSN, RN

We had a patient who had an aneurysm and a stent placed the day before. This morning, she had a slight neuro change with right leg weakness and a decline in conversation and communication. The nurse, Janel Patek, was a float to our unit from 4Truett and was precepting another nurse. Despite being in an unfamiliar unit and busy training another nurse, she noticed this change and requested that the patient be re-evaluated by the doctors. The patient went to CT scan and then to interventional radiology. The patient’s cerebral stent was partially occluded, which was causing her symptoms. Had this progressed, it could have led to a much worse outcome and a larger CVA. The doctor requested the nurse be congratulated for a good catch as this could have easily been missed, and the patient would have had a worse outcome. Her good assessment skills and her actions to alert the medical staff prevented the patient from having a major stroke.