This past weekend the ER was a bit of a different experience than most weekends. With the flooding in Charleston and the surrounding areas, our team exhibited excellent teamwork in caring for patients displaced throughout our community. This team was led by our shining star and charge nurse, Kristy Judd.

One particular incident needs some extra special recognition. On Sunday morning, we received a patient who had to be carried out of his flooded West Ashley home by EMS for hypoglycemia. He did well and recovered from his incident.

When it came time to discharge him home, his nurse, Stephen Lowdermilk, recognized that this man and his spouse did not have a safe, dry home to go back to. He also didn't have any of his diabetic medications and had only the wet clothes that he had worn. Stephen and Kristy coordinated a dry set of clothes, made sure that he had medications, and set up a hotel room for them to go to. The patient also did not have his walker since it was left in the flooded house. Kristy was able to find the patient a walker to use upon discharge and made sure that he and his spouse were transported to the hotel safely.

This process was not a speedy one (taking almost the entire shift to coordinate), and all while Kristy was the 'traffic controller', AKA charge nurse, in the ED. On a good day, it's a tough job, but during a disaster and on a weekend, she made lemonade out of lemons.