Martha D Alcantar Lopez
September 2022
Martha D
Alcantar Lopez
,
RN, CCRN
CVICU
Hillcrest Medical Center
Tulsa
,
OK
United States

 

 

 

Martha picked up multiple overtime shifts to help take care of this patient to be the primary ECMO specialist.
In 2020 when COVID first started I was working on the COVID unit with patients on ECMO. Around the time we received our second patient on ECMO who had COVID, I was the ECMO Specialist and we were needing staff to come in to help. Martha picked up multiple overtime shifts to help take care of this patient to be the primary ECMO specialist. This was very meaningful because this was a scary time in healthcare. Hospitals all over the country were needing staff and Martha willingly would come in to help our team and provide excellent care to this patient.

I remember once before work Martha went to a store on her day off and bought a hairbrush. The patient was on a ventilator and her hair had gotten matted up so during our shift Martha spent time to brush and detangle this patient's hair. I clearly remember the patient being so thankful for doing that. Sometimes it is simple acts of care like brushing a patient’s hair that helps to make them feel “human” during times of sickness.