Carrie Berry
April 2021
Carolyn
Berry
,
RN
Grassy Creek Health Care Center
Eskenazi Health
Indianaplis
,
IN
United States
Carrie’s empathetic heart, compassion for patients, and quick thinking were highlighted in her efforts.
Carrie Berry went above and beyond the call to help a patient get home after this visit. Carrie and I walked a patient home on Friday. At 4:00, Carrie came to me and let me know she was going to step out for just a few minutes to help walk a patient home. When she told me, I asked if she had a peer to support and she said she would be fine. Without hesitation, I told her I would be walking with her because I did not want her to walk back alone. From there Carrie and I met up with the patient and began walking the gentleman outside the clinic and were on our way.
It wasn’t until we were about to cross the street when the man’s physical ailments were most evident. The patient was blind, had a shuffling gait, and was a severely brittle diabetic with poor renal function. This was about to make for a very interesting walk. We managed to cross the first very busy street and found the sidewalk. After about 15 minutes into our stroll, Carolyn picked up that the gentleman was no longer able to maintain a conversation with us. She quickly identified that the man’s blood sugar was dropping, and he needed something to boost his sugar. Fortunately, we were coming up on a taco truck, and Carrie stayed with the patient, and I walked up to find him some juice. We bought a refreshing cup of pineapple juice and helped the patient drink the cup of juice. Carrie was also able to interview the gentleman to determine just how brittle of a diabetic he is – and reported the lowest his sugar has dropped was 24.
While we walked with the gentleman to his apartment it was clear the man needed something more of substance than a glass of pineapple juice. If one has never been to this particular street corner, please understand there is incredibly limited food options, especially to pedestrians and even fewer for diabetics. We stopped by a Church’s chicken, per the gentleman’s request but they were not open to walk-in customers (only a drive-thru). We had passed a McDonald’s and a Taco Bell but there was nothing else for quite a while. Carrie had the creative idea to order this gentleman something from Door Dash to provide him with sustenance as we continued to find out that his blindness is negatively impacting his ability to cook. Carrie’s empathetic heart, compassion for patients, and quick thinking were highlighted in her efforts. Carrie went above and beyond the call of duty for this patient, it was an honor to witness these efforts firsthand.
It wasn’t until we were about to cross the street when the man’s physical ailments were most evident. The patient was blind, had a shuffling gait, and was a severely brittle diabetic with poor renal function. This was about to make for a very interesting walk. We managed to cross the first very busy street and found the sidewalk. After about 15 minutes into our stroll, Carolyn picked up that the gentleman was no longer able to maintain a conversation with us. She quickly identified that the man’s blood sugar was dropping, and he needed something to boost his sugar. Fortunately, we were coming up on a taco truck, and Carrie stayed with the patient, and I walked up to find him some juice. We bought a refreshing cup of pineapple juice and helped the patient drink the cup of juice. Carrie was also able to interview the gentleman to determine just how brittle of a diabetic he is – and reported the lowest his sugar has dropped was 24.
While we walked with the gentleman to his apartment it was clear the man needed something more of substance than a glass of pineapple juice. If one has never been to this particular street corner, please understand there is incredibly limited food options, especially to pedestrians and even fewer for diabetics. We stopped by a Church’s chicken, per the gentleman’s request but they were not open to walk-in customers (only a drive-thru). We had passed a McDonald’s and a Taco Bell but there was nothing else for quite a while. Carrie had the creative idea to order this gentleman something from Door Dash to provide him with sustenance as we continued to find out that his blindness is negatively impacting his ability to cook. Carrie’s empathetic heart, compassion for patients, and quick thinking were highlighted in her efforts. Carrie went above and beyond the call of duty for this patient, it was an honor to witness these efforts firsthand.