TJ was caring for a patient who needed to be discharged with an indwelling catheter, which required teaching on care, preventing infections, etc. This patient only spoke Pashto, which is the national language of Afghanistan. During the course of his shift, TJ communicated with this patient through an interpreter. However, when it came to discharge instructions, TJ wanted to provide the patient with a handout in the patient's spoken language. Unfortunately, Epic did not have any Pashto language instructions available for catheter care. TJ was very concerned that the patient should receive appropriate instructions to prevent complications or readmission, so he reached out for help. Through the interpreter indicated that Arabic may be similar enough that the patient could understand. However, when TJ provided the handout, the patient wasn’t able to read it. I suggested reaching out to Language Services, which TJ did. Unfortunately, the time for translating would be 4 days, and the patient was ready for discharge that day. So, TJ set out to solve the problem. TJ copied and pasted line by line into Google Translate to create a set of instructions to print for the patient. He then validated through the interpreter that the instructions could be understood accurately so the patient could receive adequate instructions and discharge safely.

TJ went above and beyond for this patient. He could have left the patient with only verbal instructions and hoped for the best. Instead, he took the time to meet the patient’s needs with dedication and compassion. I can imagine it can be challenging and even scary to be in a hospital where no one speaks your language. TJ recognized the importance of respecting patients no matter who they are or where they come from. We should all aspire to care for patients with the same level of sensitivity and compassion. I’ve overheard how kind and thorough TJ is with his patients several times. HE is the definition of a DAISY Nurse.