LT Hernandez displayed all criteria of a TAMC DAISY Nurse in the compassionate care of a recent patient. The patient was being worked up for a series of diagnoses, all of which would be life-altering and have complicated treatment and prognosis implications. The sudden complexity of the work-up was causing the patient significant distress. The patient’s distress was most evident when the medical team ordered an additional series of lab draws, just hours after morning lab draws. After reporting being a difficult stick and having had multiple failed attempts made during the morning lab draw, (this information was confirmed after an Ultrasound IV Instructor and Superuser confirmed with ultrasound equipment), the patient broke into tears upon hearing fresh new labs would be needed. Displaying a heightened responsiveness during the situation, LT Hernandez used therapeutic communication to patiently listen to all the patient’s anxieties, then to empathetically communicate that she would do everything in her power to minimize the patient’s physical pain and emotional stress.

Throughout the whirlwind of the patient’s work-up, she had not felt heard by any provider. LT Hernandez broke that pattern and took the time to establish a foundation of trust with the patient, who reportedly felt acknowledged as a member in her own treatment. Once a proficient Lab Technician (66K) as an enlisted soldier, LT Hernandez explained to the patient and nursing team that each of the new, infrequently seen labs coincided with the typical morning labs and could be ordered as “Add-Ons”. LT Hernandez called lab and asked to “Add-On” these labs; however, lab reported they would need fresh tubes. Now, most nurses unfamiliar with the processes/policies of lab work and the atypical labs in question would have given up there and retreated to fresh-stick the patient. However, LT Hernandez’s clinical acumen and commitment to the highest standards of care prompted her to find a safer, more efficient, and less traumatic solution. Calling upon her extensive history and familiarity with lab policy, she printed several hospital policies, backed up by instructional information from the Labcorp website and walked down to lab. She used her objective lab expertise in conjunction with tenacious, nursing-driven patient advocacy to explain why it would be appropriate to run the lab “addons” and NOT fresh-stick the patient.

Ultimately, the labs were ordered as add-ons and the patient was safe from the needle. Keeping true to her promise of doing no harm, LT Hernandez provided significant relief to the patient while still accomplishing critical diagnostic tests. LT Hernandez displayed not one, but all of TAMC DAISY Award Criteria. She established a foundation of trust with a patient who felt overlooked and secured that foundation by following through on her word. Amongst a plethora of admirable attributes, she exhibited commendable empathy in understanding the emotional needs of the patient while simultaneously living the Army Value of Duty to accomplish the necessary mission. She displayed clinical acumen in her thorough understanding of the blood draw process, from poke to centrifuge. Using paper printouts of policy and best practice articles, she educated the nursing, medical, and lab team in a nurturing manner that fostered an appropriate pivot in care and had a profoundly positive impact on the patient’s plan of care. Having witnessed all this in-person as a member of the nursing team, I truly believe LT Hernandez is a true DAISY Nurse.