Tiffany R. Rudd
August 2021
Tiffany R.
Rudd
,
BSN
Surgical & Peds Acute-3 South
St. John's Regional Medical Center
Oxnard
,
CA
United States

 

 

 

She was kind, compassionate, calm, and extremely helpful in a high-stress situation.
I wanted to relay a personal experience I had one night at Dignity Health St. John's in Oxnard. Our very close friends, "J" & "K," were riding a motorcycle when "K" told "J" to pull over. "K" has a heart condition, and "J" knew something was wrong. She went limp as he slowed the motorcycle, trying to hang onto her sitting behind him. They stopped on the side of the road, and "J" immediately started CPR on her. He couldn't get a pulse. After 5 or 6 minutes, someone finally stopped, and "J" said to call 911. The paramedics came and continued with CPR while "J" called his daughter, who is an RN and lives out of state. The paramedics finally got a pulse and rushed her to Dignity Health St. Johns. The daughter called my wife, who was with me in our car. We rushed to the hospital, and I dropped my wife off at the Emergency Room while I parked the car. The RN behind the desk in the Emergency waiting room must have read my wife's mind because all my wife could say was "K." She took my wife's temperature and ushered her back into the emergency room, where "J" was standing next to his wife. A few moments later, I rushed into the Emergency waiting room and stood next to the desk, waiting impatiently for the person in front of me to finish his conversation with the receptionist. At that time, a nurse came back through the double doors from the emergency room and saw me. I told her I had just dropped off my wife and our friend was in the emergency room. She took my temperature and asked if I was a friend of "K." She said they only allow two visitors, but I could wait right here, and she would tell them. She was my conduit for updates on "K," which I really appreciated. After a while, "J" and my wife came back into the emergency waiting room, and "J" asked if I could go to LAX and pick up his daughter, who would arrive at 12:15 am and bring her to the hospital. We arrived back at St. John's at 1:45 am, and after walking through the emergency room doors, I saw the same RN that helped us earlier. She recognized me, and she seemed to anticipate our needs. She calmly welcomed us and told "M"("J's" daughter) that her mother was in ICU. She offered to walk with us and show us where the ICU was located so "M" could be reunited with her dad. This was a big help and going the extra mile, especially since it was so late and there was no one in the hallways to ask directions if we got turned around. I can't express to you how grateful I am to that nurse who was in the emergency room that night. She was kind, compassionate, calm, and extremely helpful in a high-stress situation. She anticipated our needs and went the extra mile in showing us where to go and assuring us that "K" was getting the best medical care possible. It was comforting. Throughout the last couple of days, "K" has received the best medical care possible. She survived the first critical days, got her blood pressure back up, and they are discovering how best to treat her. Perhaps, there is some way you could recognize Tiffany for her wonderful treatment of us during this stressful time. It was much appreciated, and our prayers were answered. I believe God does send his angels to help us on this earth, and many of those angels are in the form of compassionate people; and one of them was an RN in the emergency room named Tiffany.