Joanna Gilbert
April 2021
Joanna
Gilbert
,
RN
D2W Telemetry/Stroke
Mount Sinai South Nassau
Oceanside
,
NY
United States
Joanna was advocating for her patient and doing everything in her power to help him. It was no coincidence that every time she left his room his heart would literally skip.
I had the privilege of going through nursing school with Joanna and have seen her grow so much throughout her career. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, she was the first day-shift nurse on our floor to go into the first COVID positive patient room. Without hesitation I watched her gown up, go into a room by herself, close the door behind her and just do her job well. This was back when there were so many unknowns. Her fearlessness combined with her passion to care for others is truly inspiring.
While there are so many inspiring stories I could tell about Joanna, I would like to tell you of a recent experience that I saw firsthand. Joanna had a male patient who was 55-years-old. The patient was negative for COVID-19, sharing a room with another male patient whom he does not know. He had an extensive family cardiac history, but no true medical history of his own. He was scared and anxious and no matter how much Joanna tried to calm his nerves, all he could think about was his father and brother who died of cardiac arrest at the age he is now. I started my shift with Joanna at 7:00 AM. After working together for so long, I could tell through her mask that she was on a mission. I watched her print her patient’s cardiac rhythm strips, comparing them to all of the EKGs we had on file for him. She would put out a call to a doctor, then run back into the patient’s room. The phone would ring, she would talk to the doctor, and then it’s back into the patient's room. The patient had a negative cardiac catheterization but now needed an ablation at a different hospital facility.
In the meantime, the patient was going in and out of ventricular tachycardia, a deadly arrhythmia, and having intermittent chest pain. The unit was alerted that the patient was coming in and out of arrhythmias more frequently now and I went into the patient’s room to check on him. Joanna was in the room tending to the patient. I looked around and she had already gotten an echo technician to come and complete his echocardiogram at the bedside, the defibrillator was on his nightstand, god forbid he went into cardiac arrest, and she was speaking with the patient and his wife on speakerphone explaining next steps. She had multiple calls out to multiple doctors and was waiting on medication from the pharmacy to help slow the patient’s heart rate to let it contract easier and help with perfusion.
I could tell by looking at the man’s face that his color was pale, and he would quickly become critical if no interventions were made. Joanna was working hard and fast and getting the entire medical team involved. She spoke with the primary doctor, the electrophysiologist, and the cardiologist. She explained to the pharmacist that his medications need to be made a priority and then talked to the phlebotomist to draw his cardiac enzymes at once. Joanna was advocating for her patient and doing everything in her power to help him. It was no coincidence that every time she left his room his heart would literally skip. The more worked up he got, the worse his cardiac rhythm became. He knew as long as she was there with him, he was in good hands.
Anxiety medication was out of the question due to his current state, so Joanna got approval for his wife to come to the bedside. By the afternoon Joanna was able to stabilize this patient. The medications she gave all morning while constantly checking to make sure it didn’t drop his heart rate or blood pressure worked. Every doctor on his case saw this patient first on their rounds and gave their recommendations because she had called them at the beginning of her shift. His wife was at the bedside keeping his anxiety at bay. He was thankful and color came into his face. He knew he still needed the ablation but didn’t have that sense of impending doom. The chest pain was gone and while his heart rate was on the lower side, he was stable for transfer. He went on to have his procedure and left the unit safely and smiling.
Joanna started that shift at 7:00 AM and didn’t stop moving until 8:00 PM. While this is a motivating story, it’s just another day at work for her. Joanna advocates for her patients like this every day, and knows exactly which avenues to take to get her patients where they need to be. Joanna Gilbert needs to be recognized for her greatness and I am lucky to have witnessed just a fraction of what she can do. Joanna is a phenomenal nurse and is deserving of all the credit.
While there are so many inspiring stories I could tell about Joanna, I would like to tell you of a recent experience that I saw firsthand. Joanna had a male patient who was 55-years-old. The patient was negative for COVID-19, sharing a room with another male patient whom he does not know. He had an extensive family cardiac history, but no true medical history of his own. He was scared and anxious and no matter how much Joanna tried to calm his nerves, all he could think about was his father and brother who died of cardiac arrest at the age he is now. I started my shift with Joanna at 7:00 AM. After working together for so long, I could tell through her mask that she was on a mission. I watched her print her patient’s cardiac rhythm strips, comparing them to all of the EKGs we had on file for him. She would put out a call to a doctor, then run back into the patient’s room. The phone would ring, she would talk to the doctor, and then it’s back into the patient's room. The patient had a negative cardiac catheterization but now needed an ablation at a different hospital facility.
In the meantime, the patient was going in and out of ventricular tachycardia, a deadly arrhythmia, and having intermittent chest pain. The unit was alerted that the patient was coming in and out of arrhythmias more frequently now and I went into the patient’s room to check on him. Joanna was in the room tending to the patient. I looked around and she had already gotten an echo technician to come and complete his echocardiogram at the bedside, the defibrillator was on his nightstand, god forbid he went into cardiac arrest, and she was speaking with the patient and his wife on speakerphone explaining next steps. She had multiple calls out to multiple doctors and was waiting on medication from the pharmacy to help slow the patient’s heart rate to let it contract easier and help with perfusion.
I could tell by looking at the man’s face that his color was pale, and he would quickly become critical if no interventions were made. Joanna was working hard and fast and getting the entire medical team involved. She spoke with the primary doctor, the electrophysiologist, and the cardiologist. She explained to the pharmacist that his medications need to be made a priority and then talked to the phlebotomist to draw his cardiac enzymes at once. Joanna was advocating for her patient and doing everything in her power to help him. It was no coincidence that every time she left his room his heart would literally skip. The more worked up he got, the worse his cardiac rhythm became. He knew as long as she was there with him, he was in good hands.
Anxiety medication was out of the question due to his current state, so Joanna got approval for his wife to come to the bedside. By the afternoon Joanna was able to stabilize this patient. The medications she gave all morning while constantly checking to make sure it didn’t drop his heart rate or blood pressure worked. Every doctor on his case saw this patient first on their rounds and gave their recommendations because she had called them at the beginning of her shift. His wife was at the bedside keeping his anxiety at bay. He was thankful and color came into his face. He knew he still needed the ablation but didn’t have that sense of impending doom. The chest pain was gone and while his heart rate was on the lower side, he was stable for transfer. He went on to have his procedure and left the unit safely and smiling.
Joanna started that shift at 7:00 AM and didn’t stop moving until 8:00 PM. While this is a motivating story, it’s just another day at work for her. Joanna advocates for her patients like this every day, and knows exactly which avenues to take to get her patients where they need to be. Joanna Gilbert needs to be recognized for her greatness and I am lucky to have witnessed just a fraction of what she can do. Joanna is a phenomenal nurse and is deserving of all the credit.