Amanda
Wade
September 2020
Amanda
Wade
,
SN
University at Buffalo, School of Nursing
Chestnut Ridge
,
NY
United States
Amanda cared for a variety of patients with medical and surgical needs during her clinical rotation at South Buffalo Mercy Hospital. Not only was she able to develop a wonderful rapport with the nursing staff, but also a calming and therapeutic nurse/patient relationship with each of her patients that she cared for during the short time she was in clinical. Amanda went above and beyond in providing compassionate, holistic, and patient-centered care.
Most of her patients had multiple medical comorbidities along with the psychological stress of being in the hospital and being in the hospital alone during a global pandemic. Amanda spoke with all of her patients in a calm and professional manner and let them share their stories as much as they were willing and able to. She advocated for her patients when she felt something was not right, as was evidenced when her patient was advised by the nursing staff to stand up even after he was complaining of severe pain in his right foot. Amanda and her clinical partner listened to the patient's concerns and assessed his foot where they found, after removing his sock, that his dressing was completely balled up and not covering any part of the patient's large open foot wound. They informed the nurse and performed appropriate wound care and re-dressed the patient's foot.
She also cared for a patient whose hospital stay had been extended after post-surgical complications, necessitating several drainage tubes and bags and a tracheostomy. Amanda spent her whole shift in this gentlemen's room, providing meticulous care and finding a way to communicate with him since he was non-verbal due to the trach. By the end of her two days with this patient, she had developed a means of communicating with him and understanding his needs through non-verbal cues, lip-reading, and hand gestures. She made all of her patients whom she cared for feel as comfortable as she could and a couple of her patients throughout the clinical rotation made sure to point out how she will make an excellent Registered Nurse upon graduation.
Most of her patients had multiple medical comorbidities along with the psychological stress of being in the hospital and being in the hospital alone during a global pandemic. Amanda spoke with all of her patients in a calm and professional manner and let them share their stories as much as they were willing and able to. She advocated for her patients when she felt something was not right, as was evidenced when her patient was advised by the nursing staff to stand up even after he was complaining of severe pain in his right foot. Amanda and her clinical partner listened to the patient's concerns and assessed his foot where they found, after removing his sock, that his dressing was completely balled up and not covering any part of the patient's large open foot wound. They informed the nurse and performed appropriate wound care and re-dressed the patient's foot.
She also cared for a patient whose hospital stay had been extended after post-surgical complications, necessitating several drainage tubes and bags and a tracheostomy. Amanda spent her whole shift in this gentlemen's room, providing meticulous care and finding a way to communicate with him since he was non-verbal due to the trach. By the end of her two days with this patient, she had developed a means of communicating with him and understanding his needs through non-verbal cues, lip-reading, and hand gestures. She made all of her patients whom she cared for feel as comfortable as she could and a couple of her patients throughout the clinical rotation made sure to point out how she will make an excellent Registered Nurse upon graduation.