Laurel Gerardi
June 2020
Laurel
Gerardi
,
BSN, RN, CCRN
Minor Procedures
Newton Medical Center
Newton
,
NJ
United States
Laurel Gerardi had a patient come in as an outpatient for blood products. The ordering office had not mentioned that the patient had an LVAD (Left ventricle assist device). Laurel brought the patient in and discovered it on admission. Even though we have had education on LVAD patients none of that education instructed the nurse how to take blood pressure during the blood transfusion. Laurel made the patient and family feel comfortable and reached out to multiple resources to obtain this information.
Finally, her search led her to a nurse in another hospital. She explained the process over the phone and Laurel went to gather the materials to continue with the blood transfusion. This whole process took several hours to reach someone who was able to instruct Laurel and then to get the proper equipment. She contacted Cath Lab, ICU, ED, Cardiac Rehab, and Education.
Laurel the whole time made the family and patient feel comfortable, kept them informed of her progress while taking care of them. With LVAD patients you cannot hear a pulse or take a BP in a conventional way. You need to use a doppler in combination with a blood pressure cuff and listen for the reading. The documentation is also different, denoting the placement of LVAD in the charting.
During this patient's transfusion, Laurel has taught several RNs how to care for this patient including myself who took over the patient's care after Laurel's shift. I was comfortable with the process and finished the patient's transfusion. Both the patient and family were grateful for the care that they received that day.
Laurel's search for knowledge led to reviewing the need for more education on LVAD patients, Gagnon stating that they will come to our hospital and give training to our nurses and reviewing the need for a better doppler and equipment to meet the needs of our outpatient LVAD patients. I was extremely proud of her that day. She is a well-seasoned/experience nurse who is a valuable asset to Atlantic Healthcare, Newton Medical Center, and Minor Procedures/SDS department.
Finally, her search led her to a nurse in another hospital. She explained the process over the phone and Laurel went to gather the materials to continue with the blood transfusion. This whole process took several hours to reach someone who was able to instruct Laurel and then to get the proper equipment. She contacted Cath Lab, ICU, ED, Cardiac Rehab, and Education.
Laurel the whole time made the family and patient feel comfortable, kept them informed of her progress while taking care of them. With LVAD patients you cannot hear a pulse or take a BP in a conventional way. You need to use a doppler in combination with a blood pressure cuff and listen for the reading. The documentation is also different, denoting the placement of LVAD in the charting.
During this patient's transfusion, Laurel has taught several RNs how to care for this patient including myself who took over the patient's care after Laurel's shift. I was comfortable with the process and finished the patient's transfusion. Both the patient and family were grateful for the care that they received that day.
Laurel's search for knowledge led to reviewing the need for more education on LVAD patients, Gagnon stating that they will come to our hospital and give training to our nurses and reviewing the need for a better doppler and equipment to meet the needs of our outpatient LVAD patients. I was extremely proud of her that day. She is a well-seasoned/experience nurse who is a valuable asset to Atlantic Healthcare, Newton Medical Center, and Minor Procedures/SDS department.