My 2-year-old son was seen in the pediatric general clinic for fever and a few other symptoms. While we were in the exam room, it was obvious that his fever was quickly increasing as he began to get very red, lethargic, and extremely hot to the touch. He was swabbed for several things and was positive for strep throat. The physician wrote for an antibiotic. I carried him downstairs to the MOB pharmacy and told the pharmacist what we were there for. He said to have a seat and he would have it ready in a few minutes. I sat down in a chair with my son in my lap. I felt my son go limp in my arms but he was facedown. Initially, I believed he had fallen asleep. However, when I turned him over, I realized quickly that his eyes were open and deviated. He did not respond to any stimulation, and he was not breathing. He was quickly turning blue. I immediately stood up and yelled at the pharmacist to call for help. I ran outside the pharmacy with him in my arms to the carpeted area, laid my son down, and yelled to the desk staff to call for emergent help. It was at that moment that I realized a fellow staff member was kneeling beside my son. Shelby Webb happened to be at the pharmacy during that moment. She dropped everything she was doing when she realized the emergency and jumped into action. I am a trained pediatric nurse, but when it came to my own child, I felt so clueless and in complete and utter panic in the moments of watching my child turn blue. Shelby remained calm the entire time while taking my son’s pulse. I was giving my son rescue breaths as she continued to monitor his pulse and roll him onto his side. My son finally “came to” after several minutes (before the emergency team arrived). At that time, we decided to run with him to the ER. Shelby Webb ran with us to the ER, and even went back to the pharmacy to retrieve my personal things when I realized I had left everything in the pharmacy. Luckily, Shelby works in neurology and knew exactly what to tell the physicians, as my son did not have a typical febrile seizure. Shelby checked on us every day during our stay
at the hospital and continued even after his discharge. I can never express my gratitude to Shelby for dropping everything and helping me in that moment. I felt so helpless and could not have been more thankful to have her there. She is so very appreciated and deserves recognition for her willingness to go above and beyond to help.