Corey Trent
April 2021
Corey
Trent
,
RN
Forensic Nurse
Centra Health
LYNCHBURG
,
VA
United States
After 30 years of Nursing, I have learned from her example of patience, how she exceeds expectations and leads by example.
Forensic Nursing is a tough job. Corey has been a Forensic Nurse for just one year, but it’s been an impressive year. She has dealt with infant deaths and served on a committee that made a public service announcement warning the community on the dangers of co-sleeping after an influx of pediatric deaths the last year.
This week we had a 3-year-old child come into the ED with a “fall.” Forensic Nursing was consulted, and the doctor had decided he could go home with no significant injuries observed. Corey reviewed the child’s history and noted he had had six ER visits over the last year for a “fall.” She spent a great amount of time with this child. Corey created a connection with the child and mother explaining we see all children with multiple injuries or unexplained injuries because we don’t want to let any child down. She explained the forensic process to the mother and then step-by-step with patience explained each step to the child to put him at ease.
Corey noted several red flags and notified child protective services and the Sheriff’s department to cover all the bases. She boldly approached the physician and asked for further studies to evaluate possible trauma, past or present. She was very professional and followed the standards for advocacy and commitment to our patients. This case warranted child protective services investigating and following up. This situation had a good outcome, but the next one may not. We don’t want any child to slip under the radar. I have accompanied Corey on several cases and continue to be impressed each time. After 30 years of Nursing, I have learned from her example of patience, how she exceeds expectations and leads by example.
When Corey picked up the chart for this patient, she had no idea what this would entail. This patient’s surgery was for the first case the next day and it was already 4:00 pm. When Corey began talking with the patient, she quickly realized this patient had an extensive health history. The patient had had numerous surgeries at UVA. Due to time restraints, Corey was unable to get anesthesia records from UVA. With the safety of the patient as her top priority. Corey made every attempt to get as much information as possible for the anesthesiologist. Corey contacted the ortho office multiple times to include a piece of information they had received from UVA. Corey poured her heart into ensuring this patient’s surgery be done in the safest manner possible and with the most information possible. This was a young patient with multiple diagnoses and surgeries. As a presurgery Nurse, it is our goal to gather as much information possible to ensure our patients are cared for in the safest manner possible. Due to it being so late in the evening, many offices were closed, but Corey did not give up. She continued to call and worked diligently to get as much medical history as possible. Corey worked later than her scheduled hours to guarantee this patient excellent care. This is just one example of how Corey cares for her patients. She exudes care and compassion for ALL her patients.
This week we had a 3-year-old child come into the ED with a “fall.” Forensic Nursing was consulted, and the doctor had decided he could go home with no significant injuries observed. Corey reviewed the child’s history and noted he had had six ER visits over the last year for a “fall.” She spent a great amount of time with this child. Corey created a connection with the child and mother explaining we see all children with multiple injuries or unexplained injuries because we don’t want to let any child down. She explained the forensic process to the mother and then step-by-step with patience explained each step to the child to put him at ease.
Corey noted several red flags and notified child protective services and the Sheriff’s department to cover all the bases. She boldly approached the physician and asked for further studies to evaluate possible trauma, past or present. She was very professional and followed the standards for advocacy and commitment to our patients. This case warranted child protective services investigating and following up. This situation had a good outcome, but the next one may not. We don’t want any child to slip under the radar. I have accompanied Corey on several cases and continue to be impressed each time. After 30 years of Nursing, I have learned from her example of patience, how she exceeds expectations and leads by example.
When Corey picked up the chart for this patient, she had no idea what this would entail. This patient’s surgery was for the first case the next day and it was already 4:00 pm. When Corey began talking with the patient, she quickly realized this patient had an extensive health history. The patient had had numerous surgeries at UVA. Due to time restraints, Corey was unable to get anesthesia records from UVA. With the safety of the patient as her top priority. Corey made every attempt to get as much information as possible for the anesthesiologist. Corey contacted the ortho office multiple times to include a piece of information they had received from UVA. Corey poured her heart into ensuring this patient’s surgery be done in the safest manner possible and with the most information possible. This was a young patient with multiple diagnoses and surgeries. As a presurgery Nurse, it is our goal to gather as much information possible to ensure our patients are cared for in the safest manner possible. Due to it being so late in the evening, many offices were closed, but Corey did not give up. She continued to call and worked diligently to get as much medical history as possible. Corey worked later than her scheduled hours to guarantee this patient excellent care. This is just one example of how Corey cares for her patients. She exudes care and compassion for ALL her patients.