Sarah Thornton
May 2021
Sarah
Thornton
,
MSN, RN
Orthepedics
MedStar Georgetown University Hospital
Washington
,
DC
United States
Although many times the number of minutes that can be physically spent with a patient can be constrained due to other obligations, that has never been an obstacle for Sarah.
Sarah is always coming up with innovative ways to connect with patients and their families as well as coworkers and others on the interdisciplinary team. One example that demonstrates the compassionate care that this nurse provided to one of her patients is of special merit:
Among many diagnoses, this specific patient had peritoneal dialysis, which requires a lot of strategic planning throughout the shift, especially when having five patients and being split, so that the medical needs of the patient can be met in the required timely manner. Not only did Sarah meet the stringent medical demands, but through truly conversing with the patient, she found out the patient had a strong connection to her faith and was becoming lonely being in the hospital so long without family and friends to visit her. Learning that the patient also enjoyed keeping her mind busy, Sarah brought the patient biblical crosswords and word searches, so the patient would have something to occupy her time during her hospital visit. The patient was also concerned that she was losing physical strength because she wasn’t able to get out of bed due to the multiple surgeries that took place and the amount of deconditioning that occurred. Although it was difficult with peritoneal dialysis due to timing constraints of care, this nurse made a special effort to ensure that the patient was able to sit in the chair daily using the lift device. Oh how the patient enjoyed that! The joy could be seen on the patient’s face as I entered the room during bedside report with this nurse.
It’s creating moments that count with others that this nurse goes above and beyond to build that unique connection with her patients. Although many times the number of minutes that can be physically spent with a patient can be constrained due to other obligations, that has never been an obstacle for Sarah. Her ability to have quality time with those she cares for and to create a bond that others not only trust this nurse with their medical care, but also trust her with their emotional needs and well-being.
This extraordinary nurse is a teacher, leader, council member, and a person who cares deeply for those on our unit, patients and peers alike. Whether she is precepting new graduate nurses, orienting co-workers to the charge position, being charge herself, or working as a staff nurse on the floor, the way she provides care is meticulous and efficient. She strives to learn more about how to be a more effective healthcare provider and recently completed her MSN in Nursing and Healthcare Leadership. This nurse is also an active member on the unit practice council, which is constantly working on ways to better meet the needs of the patient population using safe and effective researched-based initiatives such as the prevention of falls with the utilization of the Posey alarm and skin breakdown with dual RN skin assessment upon admit and post-surgical interventions. Her desire to advocate for others isn’t only limited to bedside care, but this nurse is also the co-lead for the healthcare advocacy and legislative council. How Sarah finds time to be affiliated with so much and yet, be so calm and collected in the way that she cares, teaches, and leads others makes her such a role model for our unit!
What is considered important tasks to complete by the nurse often differs greatly from what is important to the patient and their families. For example, as a nurse focuses on the admission of a post-surgical patient, the patient is oftentimes primarily focused on getting something to eat, or when a doctor informs a patient they can be discharged and leave anytime, and yet, there’s so much that needs to be done prior to the patient’s departure. This nurse anticipates needs such as these consistently, with every patient, even if they aren’t assigned to her care.
For example, Sarah overheard a physician inform a patient of mine that he could leave anytime. Knowing that I was involved in a situation that couldn’t be left, this nurse coordinated with case management for needed assistive devices and taxi voucher; pharmacy for the deliverance of medications; the gathering of the needed supplies for home care; and even completed the discharged teaching with the patient so that he could get home during daylight so that his neighbors could help him.
See, the major issue to the patient wasn’t his state of health, but it was that the next day was forecasted thunderstorms and no one would be outside to help him once he got home. However, on this specific day, it was beautiful and sunny, and he needed that to make future care for him possible. Isn’t that one of our primary goals upon discharge nurses - to make it possible for a person to have the ability to take care of themselves or to coordinate care with others that are needed to complete the path of healing? This nurse made that possible for him and he was so grateful! Little did I know that all of this was completed when was finally able to leave my other patient’s room. That’s the type of nurse Sarah is; she acts for the benefit of the patient and her peers and is always willing to advocate for both and ensure needs are met.
Among many diagnoses, this specific patient had peritoneal dialysis, which requires a lot of strategic planning throughout the shift, especially when having five patients and being split, so that the medical needs of the patient can be met in the required timely manner. Not only did Sarah meet the stringent medical demands, but through truly conversing with the patient, she found out the patient had a strong connection to her faith and was becoming lonely being in the hospital so long without family and friends to visit her. Learning that the patient also enjoyed keeping her mind busy, Sarah brought the patient biblical crosswords and word searches, so the patient would have something to occupy her time during her hospital visit. The patient was also concerned that she was losing physical strength because she wasn’t able to get out of bed due to the multiple surgeries that took place and the amount of deconditioning that occurred. Although it was difficult with peritoneal dialysis due to timing constraints of care, this nurse made a special effort to ensure that the patient was able to sit in the chair daily using the lift device. Oh how the patient enjoyed that! The joy could be seen on the patient’s face as I entered the room during bedside report with this nurse.
It’s creating moments that count with others that this nurse goes above and beyond to build that unique connection with her patients. Although many times the number of minutes that can be physically spent with a patient can be constrained due to other obligations, that has never been an obstacle for Sarah. Her ability to have quality time with those she cares for and to create a bond that others not only trust this nurse with their medical care, but also trust her with their emotional needs and well-being.
This extraordinary nurse is a teacher, leader, council member, and a person who cares deeply for those on our unit, patients and peers alike. Whether she is precepting new graduate nurses, orienting co-workers to the charge position, being charge herself, or working as a staff nurse on the floor, the way she provides care is meticulous and efficient. She strives to learn more about how to be a more effective healthcare provider and recently completed her MSN in Nursing and Healthcare Leadership. This nurse is also an active member on the unit practice council, which is constantly working on ways to better meet the needs of the patient population using safe and effective researched-based initiatives such as the prevention of falls with the utilization of the Posey alarm and skin breakdown with dual RN skin assessment upon admit and post-surgical interventions. Her desire to advocate for others isn’t only limited to bedside care, but this nurse is also the co-lead for the healthcare advocacy and legislative council. How Sarah finds time to be affiliated with so much and yet, be so calm and collected in the way that she cares, teaches, and leads others makes her such a role model for our unit!
What is considered important tasks to complete by the nurse often differs greatly from what is important to the patient and their families. For example, as a nurse focuses on the admission of a post-surgical patient, the patient is oftentimes primarily focused on getting something to eat, or when a doctor informs a patient they can be discharged and leave anytime, and yet, there’s so much that needs to be done prior to the patient’s departure. This nurse anticipates needs such as these consistently, with every patient, even if they aren’t assigned to her care.
For example, Sarah overheard a physician inform a patient of mine that he could leave anytime. Knowing that I was involved in a situation that couldn’t be left, this nurse coordinated with case management for needed assistive devices and taxi voucher; pharmacy for the deliverance of medications; the gathering of the needed supplies for home care; and even completed the discharged teaching with the patient so that he could get home during daylight so that his neighbors could help him.
See, the major issue to the patient wasn’t his state of health, but it was that the next day was forecasted thunderstorms and no one would be outside to help him once he got home. However, on this specific day, it was beautiful and sunny, and he needed that to make future care for him possible. Isn’t that one of our primary goals upon discharge nurses - to make it possible for a person to have the ability to take care of themselves or to coordinate care with others that are needed to complete the path of healing? This nurse made that possible for him and he was so grateful! Little did I know that all of this was completed when was finally able to leave my other patient’s room. That’s the type of nurse Sarah is; she acts for the benefit of the patient and her peers and is always willing to advocate for both and ensure needs are met.