August 2017
Kristin
Campbell
,
RN
4 West Medical /Surgical Telemetry
Southern New Hampshire Medical Center
Nashua
,
NH
United States
Kristin was assigned to care for a patient who was a known daily IV drug user with a long history of substance abuse, multiple infections and abscesses in the past who now had cellulitis and fever. She was providing supportive care to this young woman using the narcotic withdrawal protocol and providing anti-anxiety medications. 3 days into the admission, the patient self-administered a near lethal dose of street drugs. Kristin heard the IV beeping in the bathroom for a long period of time. Using her critical thinking skills, she determined that the patient, who tended to be agitated, must be in trouble because she would have called otherwise. Her instincts were correct. When she entered the bathroom she found the patient on the ground, barely breathing and blue with a syringe lying next to her. Kristin did a fantastic job recognizing the issue and providing timely care and treatment. She called the code team and provided multiple doses of Narcan, resuscitated the patient and the patient was transferred to the ICU. Thanks to Kristin's astute judgment, the patient was rescued and resuscitated without any residual brain injury. If the situation had been different, and the nurse not so attentive, this patient may have had a very different outcome.