A was admitted to UVA with an MI and then a stroke. She had no funding for post-hospital care, was not eligible for any US government funding for care, would be unable to care for herself at home and had no family in the US to help her. She wanted to return to her family in Mexico but had no way to get there. After much work with the administration and the Mexican consulate, it was decided that the consulate would pay for the patient to fly home and UVA would pay for someone to accompany her. This is where Rosa comes in. Rosa is an SRO nurse who floats to 6C from time to time and was often assigned to A when she was here. Rosa is fluent in Spanish (A is Spanish speaking only) and A was always happy when Rosa was her nurse. Rosa heard about A's plight and volunteered to accompany A back to Mexico.
First, this involved a Saturday trip to the Mexican consulate to get A a passport. Rosa arrived an hour earlier than expected, got A bathed and dressed and fed and administered her morning medications and got her up in her wheelchair ready for the wheelchair van. Then an ambulance showed up. Rosa, forever the patient advocate, said she was not going to take the patient through the consulate flat on her back on a stretcher when she was perfectly capable of sitting up in a wheelchair and insisted on a wheelchair van. The change was made, and they set off for the consulate. Luckily, A had an appointment scheduled and the visit there went remarkably smooth. Rosa and A were back in just a few hours, passport in hand. Rosa had already gone above and beyond, giving up her Saturday to help A get one step closer to getting back to Mexico.
Then, they had to actually fly to Mexico. Rosa came by 6C the day before the planned trip to make sure A had copies of her important medical records and all of her medications ordered and prescriptions filled and had clothes to wear and bags to carry everything. A did already have a backpack and small duffel bag and social work was getting her a third bag for all of her medications. To be clear, this was not going to be an easy trip. A often required two people to assist with her transfers from chair/bed to wheelchair and back and Rosa was going to be doing this on her own. A could be incontinent of urine. She was on a special diet. This was going to be a difficult trip and the plan was to depart the hospital the next morning at 3 am, so Rosa wanted to make sure everything was tucked in. Again, on the day of departure, Rosa showed up early, this time with a large duffel bag of her own in hand so that all of A's belongings could be in one bag. Rosa got her packed up and dressed, checked all the paperwork, and they set off. At the airport, Rosa finds out that the tickets the Mexican consulate purchased were not seated together. Again, Rosa was a great patient advocate, explaining that she was the patient's caregiver, specifically hired to care for this patient during this flight, and needed to be seated with the patient. The airline tried to tell her there was nothing they could do, but she would not accept this and pushed until they were able to be seated together. A was very anxious about the flight and Rosa held her hand and provided emotional support the entire flight. When they arrived in Mexico, they were met by A's sister and an ambulance. Rosa reviewed all of the paperwork, including history and medication information and instructions with both the ambulance team and A's sister, wished A well and said goodbye. Over four months after her initial admission to UVA, A was finally home.
Rosa spent one night in Mexico and then was back on a plane at 5 am on Sunday to return to Virginia. She was stopped at customs because her passport showed such a quick turnaround. Luckily, she was not detained for long. Once she explained her situation to the higher-ups, she was cleared to re-enter the US. She was back in less than 48 hours, returning to Charlottesville on Saturday, again giving up her weekend, and hours of sleep, to help care for a woman who had no family here to help her. Rosa went so far above what is expected of a bedside nurse it is almost indescribable. When I tried to thank Rosa for doing this for our patient, she told me, "oh no, you don't have to thank me. The smile on her face when she arrived was thanks enough!" Rosa is a true DAISY Nurse.
When Rosa first came to me about this request, I was amazed at her lack of hesitation to assist. She told me her family supported her in assisting and she felt she was meant to help this patient. Rosa is truly a selfless individual who strives to ensure the best in all she does. I am privileged to work with her and call her a nursing colleague.
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Rosa is the definition of extraordinary- she goes above and beyond the call of duty for patients and their families. Rosa volunteered herself to travel with a patient to Mexico who had a stroke and needs 24/7 supervision and assistance. Rosa continued to interact with the patient, even when she was not assigned to the floor the patient was on, to continue to offer support and hope for the patient. The patient had no family in the United States and therefore needed assistance going back to Mexico to receive 24/7 support.
Rosa volunteered her time to escort the patient on her flights to Mexico and even return to the United States the following day because she wanted to get back to work at UVA as soon as possible. Rosa also advocated for the patient whenever possible, clarifying her medication regimen with the team and speaking with multiple members of her care team to ensure that the patient would be ready for a safe discharge. We cannot thank Rosa enough for all she has done for this patient, her family, and our whole hospital. She is truly a dedicated professional, one who inspires others and brings out the best in the people she touches. Thank you, Rosa!
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Rosa was working on the 6th floor and came across a patient who had had a CVA and disposition was a long drawn out process for many reasons. It seems the patient's family lived in Mexico. Rosa, as a native Spanish speaker, and because of her kind, nurturing and practical personality got to know the patient and found out that the patient wanted to go home to Mexico.
Rosa volunteered to accompany the patient to Harrisonburg to attend a meeting with a lawyer in order to complete the appropriate paperwork for this move. Sounds easy. Rosa arrived to accompany the patient and found that the meeting was in a church that was difficult to access. I believe I am remembering the details correctly when I say that Rosa had to be the patient's advocate. She thought she was just accompanying her, but it was more than that and Rosa rose to the occasion.
Later on, Rosa was asked if she would accompany the patient to a facility in Mexico City. Rosa after discussing it with her family said yes.
When she arrived on the unit at 0200 in the morning having worked the day before for 12 hours, there were still some outstanding things that needed to be addressed. Rosa knowing the UVA system helped to make sure everything was ready for the patient to transfer to the airport.
Rosa told me during the flight, she was attending to the patient when another passenger was in distress, so Rosa found herself comforting both passenger and patient. I can see her giggling while telling me.
Although Rosa was raised in Mexico, on a recent visit there with her family (her children are teenagers), she and her family were held at gunpoint. Rosa still offered to return with the patient. She also declined payment for accommodation as she wanted to stay with relatives in Mexico City and returned to Charlottesville the next day.
Rosa takes all this in her stride with a smile and a giggle. She is an experienced and adaptable RN. She is quick to recognize problems and responds to them. She is a strong advocate for patients and their families. You go, Rosa! You are brilliant.
I spoke to a case manager recently about Rosa's involvement in this situation and she also stated that Rosa made a big difference in this patient's care.