November 2020
Medical Intensive Care Unit
Atrium Health Carolinas Medical Center
Charlotte
,
NC
United States
Laura Ledford, BSN, RN CCRN Nurse Manager
Amy Adams, RN
Robert Anderson, RN
Lareine Archer, RN
Catherine Austin, RN
Casey Barfield, RN
Samantha Beatty, RN
Chloe Beer, RN
Jordan Bird, RN
Sarah Bish, RN
Cherie Brooks, RN
Christy Campbell, RN
Nicole Brown, RN
Amber Carter, RN
Carla Clark, RN
Sarah Clarke, RN
Josh Corriher, RN
Carly Crain, RN
Margaret Cullen, RN
Emily Ecuyer, RN
Carter Engel, RN
Itohowo Eyo, RN
Jennifer Ferguson, RN
Lindsey Fetterolf, RN
Martha Franceschi, RN
Kayla Fuller, RN CNS
Natalie Gago, RN
Shannon Germain, RN
Jessica Gleason, RN
Gregory Goble, RN
Holly Haines, RN
Tina Harkless, RN
Spencer Hazel, RN
Sierra Hickman, RN
Taylor Jackson, RN
Rachel Jarrell, RN
Ashley Katkin, RN
Kristine Keathley, RN
Kenzie King, RN
Anna Grace Lassiter, RN
Rebecca Lisson, RN
Danielle McCann-Tam, RN
Lori McClellan, RN
Jelena McKeithan, RN
Nathan McNeil, RN
Emma Meyer, RN
Madison Miller, RN
Joceline Munoz, RN
Olivia Murphy, RN
Hannah O’Meara, RN
Sarah Palmer, RN
Stephanie Parodi, RN
Ashlynn Patterson, RN
Colleen Patterson, RN
Christina Petrillo, RN
Jennifer Podraza, RN
Marissa Podraza, RN
Abbey Rancourt, RN
Jeffry Sanchez, RN
Miranda Scoggins, RN
Kelli Scott, RN
Hannah Sloger, RN
Aimee Soniat, RN
Kylie Sweigart, RN
Karen Swenson, RN
Crystal Tomburo, RN
Natalie Walker, RN
Madison Wright, RN
Christopher Yen, RN
Rachelle Zielazienski, RN
Amy Adams, RN
Robert Anderson, RN
Lareine Archer, RN
Catherine Austin, RN
Casey Barfield, RN
Samantha Beatty, RN
Chloe Beer, RN
Jordan Bird, RN
Sarah Bish, RN
Cherie Brooks, RN
Christy Campbell, RN
Nicole Brown, RN
Amber Carter, RN
Carla Clark, RN
Sarah Clarke, RN
Josh Corriher, RN
Carly Crain, RN
Margaret Cullen, RN
Emily Ecuyer, RN
Carter Engel, RN
Itohowo Eyo, RN
Jennifer Ferguson, RN
Lindsey Fetterolf, RN
Martha Franceschi, RN
Kayla Fuller, RN CNS
Natalie Gago, RN
Shannon Germain, RN
Jessica Gleason, RN
Gregory Goble, RN
Holly Haines, RN
Tina Harkless, RN
Spencer Hazel, RN
Sierra Hickman, RN
Taylor Jackson, RN
Rachel Jarrell, RN
Ashley Katkin, RN
Kristine Keathley, RN
Kenzie King, RN
Anna Grace Lassiter, RN
Rebecca Lisson, RN
Danielle McCann-Tam, RN
Lori McClellan, RN
Jelena McKeithan, RN
Nathan McNeil, RN
Emma Meyer, RN
Madison Miller, RN
Joceline Munoz, RN
Olivia Murphy, RN
Hannah O’Meara, RN
Sarah Palmer, RN
Stephanie Parodi, RN
Ashlynn Patterson, RN
Colleen Patterson, RN
Christina Petrillo, RN
Jennifer Podraza, RN
Marissa Podraza, RN
Abbey Rancourt, RN
Jeffry Sanchez, RN
Miranda Scoggins, RN
Kelli Scott, RN
Hannah Sloger, RN
Aimee Soniat, RN
Kylie Sweigart, RN
Karen Swenson, RN
Crystal Tomburo, RN
Natalie Walker, RN
Madison Wright, RN
Christopher Yen, RN
Rachelle Zielazienski, RN
My patient was shocked and ended up crying tears of joy instead of tears of sadness he had earlier that morning.
I just want to thank specifically Sarah, Chloe, Kristina, Josh, and the MICU nursing staff. My dad is currently fighting Covid-19 and these amazing and brave nurses are going above and beyond taking care of him. Sarah seriously brought me to tears by coordinating my stepmother being able to come in. My father had made an impulsive decision to sign a DNR overnight due to a disagreement with a physician. After just one shift with him she could recognize that this was a decision made out of fear and fought for a family meeting to take place to come to a better conclusion. She was able to have us all conference into a meeting with the physicians and my dad and we all came to the agreement that a DNR wasn't what he would want. I do not have enough words for how this nurse’s empathy literally saved my dad's life. I'm fighting tears even writing this email because I wouldn't be able to say that my dad is still fighting, I would have to say that my dad had lost the fight. Thank you so much Sarah for doing so much more than you had to and recognizing that my dad had acted out of fear that night. Thank you for taking the time to get to know him and building that relationship with him so that he would trust you. Thank you for helping my dad see reason and calming him down while I wasn't able to be his daughter-nurse. Thank you so much for saving my dad's life that day!
Chloe Thank you so much for being willing to face-time with me and my family at 9:00 in the morning, I was a nurse at that hospital for 7 years and I know that 0900 is legit the busiest med pass. Thank you for answering all of our questions while you were multitasking and attempting to draw cultures, I know that is never an easy task. I appreciate all the time you took to update my stepmother and explain things to her in a way that she can understand. Thank you for not judging me that I see intubated patients every day, but seeing my dad intubated I lost control crying. Thank you for being my dad's hero and thank you for dealing with all of our emotions from all of us as family members that are unable to see the man that has always been our hero.
Kristina thank you so much for answering my call to ask about my dad and talk to me in real life nurse talk. Thank you for being so thorough with your update and taking 30 minutes of your night to just talk to me like just another nurse on the unit. Thank you for not making me feel like a hassle and understanding that is my dad lying in the bed and that since I am an ICU nurse I have a very realistic understanding and that I'm scared I'll never be able to speak to him again. Thank you for understanding that I'm in Florida taking care of someone else's critically ill dad with COVID right now. Thank you for understanding that knowing every lab value and vent setting is the only thing keeping me grounded and being willing to talk to me twice in one night just to make sure I know his morning lab values. Again, thank you so much you are an angel and a nurse superstar!
Josh! Thank you so much for doing my dirty work and surveying the unit to find out the best food to get for you guys! Thank you for telling me the typical protocols and what's changed in the last two years since I left. Thank you for always responding to my FB messages even when you are not at work. Thank you so much for just being an extra set of nurse eyes for him. I cannot tell you how much I appreciate that.
Dr. Balbazin thank you so much for taking the time to call me when you didn't have to. Thank you so much for being so kind and patient with my dad and our dysfunctional family. Thank you for being so thorough with your phone calls and answering every question under the sun as well as understanding my twisted nurse humor. I will never forget your kindness and you will go so far as a doctor because of it!
***
A MICU RN took the time to share a nomination about how her team took care of a patient back when COVID had first started that truly shows teamwork:
I was taking care of a Hispanic male patient that had spent several days on optiflow staying about the same in terms of prognosis, becoming extremely discouraged. There was a language barrier between us, and he didn't say much, but the one thing he disclosed to me was that he missed his wife and his family dearly. He could talk to them on his cell phone but felt so alone and isolated in his hospital room with no physical contact with his outside world. One of the shifts I was taking care of him, I discovered that it was his birthday. I rallied my coworkers to cheer him up on his special day, and our goal was to just get one smile out of him, because he had not smiled for anyone since he'd been in the hospital.
I asked this patient what his favorite treat was, and he told me all he wanted was vanilla ice cream. Alice White, the dietician, set up for him to get a delicious sugar free cookie and vanilla ice cream from the cafeteria, as he was diabetic. However, we wanted to get him the real deal. We cleared it with his NP at the time, Katie Sillmon, and Hannah O'meara RN went downstairs to the Chick-fil-a to get him a vanilla milkshake. Natalie Gago RN and I went by the gift shop to get him a "Happy Birthday" balloon, and we all reconvened back on the unit. Through Stephanie Parodi's RN awesome interpreting skills, we told my patient we had a surprise for him. All of the people mentioned in this story plus Mark Kastner, a provider also on this patient's care team, and Catherine Austin RN, entered my patient's room in full PPE singing "Happy Birthday" while Mark played "Feliz cumpleaños" on a Bluetooth speaker. My patient was shocked and ended up crying tears of joy instead of tears of sadness he had earlier that morning. He was so grateful to us, and we finally got a smile out of him.
Catherine Austin RN facilitated moving him to an open room with a window so he could see the sunshine/outside, and we were able to set up a FaceTime call with his wife so he could see her on his special day. I will never forget how small acts of kindness can really impact a patient's wellbeing, and the compassionate care my team provided.
***
L’s nomination starts when we became the COVID ICU for all of Carolina Medical Center my teammates did not know what to expect. We had the same fears for our families and our health as everyone else in the world. PPE guideline changed we all adapted. From Bryan McLaughlin who met with ID and leadership pushing for us to wear N95s at all times when the guideline was only to wear masks. From Sarah Palmer who advocated for reimbursement of our respirators, which most nurses purchased when N95s became scarce. From Kayla Fuller our CNS who has left multiple virtual meetings to help us prone patients, then stay to clean and braid patient’s hair.
From Ashlynn Patterson, our nightshift clinical supervisor, who remembers the first and last names of every patient she cares for, not just the room number. From Karen Swenson, who was also nominated for a DAISY for her efforts in coordinating a birthday party for a young patient. From Jessica Schumacher, who utilized creativity and technology to use the linen cart to prop up an iPad and allow a COVID patient to facetime with his wife all day when she wasn’t able to visit. The patient couldn’t speak over his tracheostomy but was able to listen as his wife spoke for hours to him. He passed the next day. From the preceptors, who have continued to orient the new nurses to the ICU in the midst of a pandemic, teaching them how to communicate with patients and families through our respirators and calm a patient's fears when they can’t breathe.
From Jeffry Sanchez, who was not afraid to don his PPE as an interpreter in our ICU and go in patient rooms to provide important language services to a vulnerable population, then proceed to become a Journey nurse in the same ICU, still providing interpretation for our nurses and doctors during emergent situations. I could write something about the over 100 teammates who work in our unit. Every nurse that I work with still comes back the next day. They have each chosen to fight this battle for one more shift, to make another call to that family with an update, to team up for a “Spa bath” for that patient who has been vented for weeks. I nominate my team because that is commitment and that is compassion.
Chloe Thank you so much for being willing to face-time with me and my family at 9:00 in the morning, I was a nurse at that hospital for 7 years and I know that 0900 is legit the busiest med pass. Thank you for answering all of our questions while you were multitasking and attempting to draw cultures, I know that is never an easy task. I appreciate all the time you took to update my stepmother and explain things to her in a way that she can understand. Thank you for not judging me that I see intubated patients every day, but seeing my dad intubated I lost control crying. Thank you for being my dad's hero and thank you for dealing with all of our emotions from all of us as family members that are unable to see the man that has always been our hero.
Kristina thank you so much for answering my call to ask about my dad and talk to me in real life nurse talk. Thank you for being so thorough with your update and taking 30 minutes of your night to just talk to me like just another nurse on the unit. Thank you for not making me feel like a hassle and understanding that is my dad lying in the bed and that since I am an ICU nurse I have a very realistic understanding and that I'm scared I'll never be able to speak to him again. Thank you for understanding that I'm in Florida taking care of someone else's critically ill dad with COVID right now. Thank you for understanding that knowing every lab value and vent setting is the only thing keeping me grounded and being willing to talk to me twice in one night just to make sure I know his morning lab values. Again, thank you so much you are an angel and a nurse superstar!
Josh! Thank you so much for doing my dirty work and surveying the unit to find out the best food to get for you guys! Thank you for telling me the typical protocols and what's changed in the last two years since I left. Thank you for always responding to my FB messages even when you are not at work. Thank you so much for just being an extra set of nurse eyes for him. I cannot tell you how much I appreciate that.
Dr. Balbazin thank you so much for taking the time to call me when you didn't have to. Thank you so much for being so kind and patient with my dad and our dysfunctional family. Thank you for being so thorough with your phone calls and answering every question under the sun as well as understanding my twisted nurse humor. I will never forget your kindness and you will go so far as a doctor because of it!
***
A MICU RN took the time to share a nomination about how her team took care of a patient back when COVID had first started that truly shows teamwork:
I was taking care of a Hispanic male patient that had spent several days on optiflow staying about the same in terms of prognosis, becoming extremely discouraged. There was a language barrier between us, and he didn't say much, but the one thing he disclosed to me was that he missed his wife and his family dearly. He could talk to them on his cell phone but felt so alone and isolated in his hospital room with no physical contact with his outside world. One of the shifts I was taking care of him, I discovered that it was his birthday. I rallied my coworkers to cheer him up on his special day, and our goal was to just get one smile out of him, because he had not smiled for anyone since he'd been in the hospital.
I asked this patient what his favorite treat was, and he told me all he wanted was vanilla ice cream. Alice White, the dietician, set up for him to get a delicious sugar free cookie and vanilla ice cream from the cafeteria, as he was diabetic. However, we wanted to get him the real deal. We cleared it with his NP at the time, Katie Sillmon, and Hannah O'meara RN went downstairs to the Chick-fil-a to get him a vanilla milkshake. Natalie Gago RN and I went by the gift shop to get him a "Happy Birthday" balloon, and we all reconvened back on the unit. Through Stephanie Parodi's RN awesome interpreting skills, we told my patient we had a surprise for him. All of the people mentioned in this story plus Mark Kastner, a provider also on this patient's care team, and Catherine Austin RN, entered my patient's room in full PPE singing "Happy Birthday" while Mark played "Feliz cumpleaños" on a Bluetooth speaker. My patient was shocked and ended up crying tears of joy instead of tears of sadness he had earlier that morning. He was so grateful to us, and we finally got a smile out of him.
Catherine Austin RN facilitated moving him to an open room with a window so he could see the sunshine/outside, and we were able to set up a FaceTime call with his wife so he could see her on his special day. I will never forget how small acts of kindness can really impact a patient's wellbeing, and the compassionate care my team provided.
***
L’s nomination starts when we became the COVID ICU for all of Carolina Medical Center my teammates did not know what to expect. We had the same fears for our families and our health as everyone else in the world. PPE guideline changed we all adapted. From Bryan McLaughlin who met with ID and leadership pushing for us to wear N95s at all times when the guideline was only to wear masks. From Sarah Palmer who advocated for reimbursement of our respirators, which most nurses purchased when N95s became scarce. From Kayla Fuller our CNS who has left multiple virtual meetings to help us prone patients, then stay to clean and braid patient’s hair.
From Ashlynn Patterson, our nightshift clinical supervisor, who remembers the first and last names of every patient she cares for, not just the room number. From Karen Swenson, who was also nominated for a DAISY for her efforts in coordinating a birthday party for a young patient. From Jessica Schumacher, who utilized creativity and technology to use the linen cart to prop up an iPad and allow a COVID patient to facetime with his wife all day when she wasn’t able to visit. The patient couldn’t speak over his tracheostomy but was able to listen as his wife spoke for hours to him. He passed the next day. From the preceptors, who have continued to orient the new nurses to the ICU in the midst of a pandemic, teaching them how to communicate with patients and families through our respirators and calm a patient's fears when they can’t breathe.
From Jeffry Sanchez, who was not afraid to don his PPE as an interpreter in our ICU and go in patient rooms to provide important language services to a vulnerable population, then proceed to become a Journey nurse in the same ICU, still providing interpretation for our nurses and doctors during emergent situations. I could write something about the over 100 teammates who work in our unit. Every nurse that I work with still comes back the next day. They have each chosen to fight this battle for one more shift, to make another call to that family with an update, to team up for a “Spa bath” for that patient who has been vented for weeks. I nominate my team because that is commitment and that is compassion.