Terrie Leslie
July 2015
Terrie
Leslie
,
BSN, RN, CPHON
Medicine Room
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
Memphis
,
TN
United States

 

 

 

My daughter and I arrived at St. Jude for her checkup appointments. We flew in from Florida. My daughter has diabetes insipidus and takes a medication, DDAVP, with a dose measured using a very specific small measuring tube. The medication is then blown into her nose. I noticed that I brought the medication but forgot the tube. There was no way for me to give my daughter the medication. I called the pharmacy, but they did not have extra tubes. I called the Medicine Room and Terrie answered the phone. She took time to hear my need. She used critical thinking skills to come up with a solution for that night. Amazingly, she thought of using a sterile baby catheter kit which contained a very small, clean tube. She heard my daughter say that she did not want to go to the hospital because she was too tired. Terrie let us know that she was getting ready to clock out for the night and that she could meet me outside of the Tri Delta Place. I was blown away that Terrie would have taken so much time with me on the phone as she was getting ready to leave for the night. Not only did she come up with a creative way to help a patient receive a necessary medication after hours, she then went above and beyond by delivering the kit to the Tri Delta Place.

I am so thankful for Terrie. Not only did her efforts help us that night, but because of her critical thinking skills, we didn't need to have a prescription filled by St. Jude simply to have the dosing tubes. By doing this, Terrie also helped St. Jude by being a good steward of St. Jude funds. This was an amazing way to start out our St. Jude visit. Nurses like Terrie make St. Jude the amazing place that it is. She goes above and beyond to make families and patients feel safe and cared for.