Recently, I was discharging a man who had received a new suprapubic catheter during his admission. The man was very frustrated and upset about this new tube. I tried my best to thoroughly teach him how to care for the catheter at home. While demonstrating care, the man asked, "can this be done standing up in front of a mirror?" I replied "yes". Very aggravated, he stated, "this is so embarrassing, I am so big that I can't even see the catheter unless I stand up in front of a mirror". I could tell this man was very discouraged. He stated, "I used to look at people like me and wonder how they could ever let themselves get that way, just let themselves go and get so unhealthy. Now, here I am." The man had a BKA and was able to walk with a prosthetic leg, however, it was still difficult for him to get around.
The person he thought would be picking him up at discharge couldn't make it to the hospital that day (upsetting this patient more) so social work provided the man with a cab pass. IVs were pulled and discharge instructions were reviewed. There was a problem, however. The man had a prescription for Cipro PO BID for three days which was sent to his local pharmacy. The patient, while staring down at his catheter and then the leg, stated, "If I take a cab home, I will not go back out to the pharmacy." This meant he would miss at least 2 doses of the Cipro and that was if he could get to the pharmacy by the following afternoon. He stubbornly began to dress himself. As he tossed his clothes around and groaned as if he was annoyed, I asked if I could help. He stated, "I don't even know". I felt so sorry for my patient because you could see the sadness all over his face, but I wasn't sure what else to do to help him.
I went to my charge nurse, Diana, to ask if she had any suggestions. Of course she did, she always has good suggestions. She suggested having the prescription moved to the James outpatient pharmacy so the patient could get the medication before leaving. This was the perfect solution. I called the doctor and had the prescription moved to the James pharmacy. In the meantime, Diana went to see how my patient was doing. She always has a way of talking to those who are frustrated or down. I went to notify the patient the prescription was being moved so he could get his Cipro prior to discharge. He then stated, "it really is just easier to get it at my pharmacy when I'm able because I don't have any money with me to pay for the medication."
Diana said, "Let me see if I can work on this". She spent some time on the phone with the pharmacy and then came back to the room. With pharmacy still on the phone, she told the patient the copay was $5 and some odd cents and that he didn't need his actual card if he had someone at home that could give him the card information. The patient said "no, there isn't anyone to do that. It would really just be easier if you sent the medication back to my pharmacy". Diana, still on the phone with pharmacy, in front of the patient says "oh, that would be great! And you can get that ready right away? Perfect!...(hangs up)." She said, "they will have your medication ready in a few minutes and there is actually no copay." She winked at me as she walked out.
Once I left the room, I asked Diana how she was able to get the medication. She stated, "that man has more to worry about than how he will get his medication". Diana purchased the medication for the patient, with her own money and brought it to him. The patient was able to go home, relax and heal without worrying about how he would get his medication all because of Diana's selfless act.
Diana's selflessness is a common thing. It's just who she is. However, after this act of kindness, I felt she deserved recognition. She is a fabulous nurse. One you can always go to for help, one you can always count on, one who is always positive and one I would totally trust and want to care for my family members or even myself. We are truly lucky to have her on 10 Rhodes.