Sean Winter
January 2023
Sean
Winter
,
LPN
Medical
Atrium Health
Lincolnton
,
NC
United States
Sean used his nursing and personal knowledge to make the patient feel safe and heard while also controlling the situation and ensuring the safety of patients and teammates.
Sean came to our unit in May of 2021. He started during the crisis of Covid but hit the ground running. Ever since he has been with us, he has gone above and beyond for patient care and supporting his teammates. He has received many “WoW” cards from patients stating he is very thorough with his care and education. He has explained “why” and the “how” better than anyone because he took the time. Teammates have shouted out stating that he has rescued them when they were in a bind. These may sound like ordinary incidents, but we all know this does not happen every day. However, with Sean on our unit it happens on a normal basis. However, there are two incidents that make his compassion and heart stand out among his peers.
Our unit was assigned a behavior health patient that was being transferred in from another hospital. A physician warned us that he had the potential of being dangerous and could seriously hurt someone. When Sean heard this, he automatically volunteered to take the patient when he found out the patient was assigned to a pregnant teammate, stating, “no, she does not need him, give him to me.” When the patient arrived on the unit, Sean and the patient began to bond. Sean learned that he had the same autism as his daughter. Sean was well-versed in how to treat and get along with the patient. He treated him like he would his own family member, his daughter.
On one occasion, the patient became very agitated with his television. He could not change the channels and it was blasting music. He began to scream, yell, cuss, and threaten the staff. I immediately went into the room and tried to calm him down explaining to him we were working on getting someone in the room. Sean ran into the room once he found out what was going on. He looked at the patient and started redirecting him to his lunch and asked him questions about it. He answered him quickly and respectfully. Then I asked a question about his food, but he did not answer me. I followed up asking, “are you not going to talk to me?” He shouted, “Shut the “F” up.” Sean said, “this is my manager, I respect her, we all respect her, and I need you to respect her as well.” The patient looked at me and then dropped his head and said, “Roast beef”. Then Sean looked at me and said, “you can step out now I have this.”
With this same patient, Sean again displayed leadership and caring one evening after his shift. Another RN entered the room at shift change and accidentally stepped on the patient’s toes. She immediately apologized, but the patient became irate, yelling vulgar terms and kicked her. Security and a “threat of violence” were called overhead. Knowing this patient, Sean also responded in a compassionate way to help de-escalate the situation. Sean stayed well after his shift to help medicate the patient for the evening and ensure his teammates were safe before he left. He used his rapport with this patient to take control of the situation.
Without Sean’s direct and compassionate intervention, this patient could have continued to escalate, but instead, Sean used his nursing and personal knowledge to make the patient feel safe and heard while also controlling the situation and ensuring the safety of patients and teammates. Sean exemplifies care, compassion, leadership, and integrity by treating this patient like he would a family member. He treated me, his teammate, like his family as well by keeping me safe.
Another example of Sean putting his team first before himself was on a cold morning before getting to work. Another pregnant teammate was on her way to work and had a flat tire on the side of the road. The charge nurse, knowing that Sean may drive that way called him asking where he was, and told him the situation. Sean was already here next to Bar-B-Que King. He immediately turned around to assist his teammate. He not only got her to work safe and warm but he left his jack and tools with her boyfriend who had her daughter in the car. When I got to work, Sean immediately ran to my office and said, “please don’t count me tardy but just know I was here on time.” I had already heard about his selfless act and told him he was fine. I asked the teammate about Sean picking her up, and she said "not only did he get me here but in style with warm seats. Sean will not stop when it comes to going that extra mile for his teammates and patients. He shines Atrium Health proud and encompasses all of our culture commitments on a daily basis both on and off the clock.
Our unit was assigned a behavior health patient that was being transferred in from another hospital. A physician warned us that he had the potential of being dangerous and could seriously hurt someone. When Sean heard this, he automatically volunteered to take the patient when he found out the patient was assigned to a pregnant teammate, stating, “no, she does not need him, give him to me.” When the patient arrived on the unit, Sean and the patient began to bond. Sean learned that he had the same autism as his daughter. Sean was well-versed in how to treat and get along with the patient. He treated him like he would his own family member, his daughter.
On one occasion, the patient became very agitated with his television. He could not change the channels and it was blasting music. He began to scream, yell, cuss, and threaten the staff. I immediately went into the room and tried to calm him down explaining to him we were working on getting someone in the room. Sean ran into the room once he found out what was going on. He looked at the patient and started redirecting him to his lunch and asked him questions about it. He answered him quickly and respectfully. Then I asked a question about his food, but he did not answer me. I followed up asking, “are you not going to talk to me?” He shouted, “Shut the “F” up.” Sean said, “this is my manager, I respect her, we all respect her, and I need you to respect her as well.” The patient looked at me and then dropped his head and said, “Roast beef”. Then Sean looked at me and said, “you can step out now I have this.”
With this same patient, Sean again displayed leadership and caring one evening after his shift. Another RN entered the room at shift change and accidentally stepped on the patient’s toes. She immediately apologized, but the patient became irate, yelling vulgar terms and kicked her. Security and a “threat of violence” were called overhead. Knowing this patient, Sean also responded in a compassionate way to help de-escalate the situation. Sean stayed well after his shift to help medicate the patient for the evening and ensure his teammates were safe before he left. He used his rapport with this patient to take control of the situation.
Without Sean’s direct and compassionate intervention, this patient could have continued to escalate, but instead, Sean used his nursing and personal knowledge to make the patient feel safe and heard while also controlling the situation and ensuring the safety of patients and teammates. Sean exemplifies care, compassion, leadership, and integrity by treating this patient like he would a family member. He treated me, his teammate, like his family as well by keeping me safe.
Another example of Sean putting his team first before himself was on a cold morning before getting to work. Another pregnant teammate was on her way to work and had a flat tire on the side of the road. The charge nurse, knowing that Sean may drive that way called him asking where he was, and told him the situation. Sean was already here next to Bar-B-Que King. He immediately turned around to assist his teammate. He not only got her to work safe and warm but he left his jack and tools with her boyfriend who had her daughter in the car. When I got to work, Sean immediately ran to my office and said, “please don’t count me tardy but just know I was here on time.” I had already heard about his selfless act and told him he was fine. I asked the teammate about Sean picking her up, and she said "not only did he get me here but in style with warm seats. Sean will not stop when it comes to going that extra mile for his teammates and patients. He shines Atrium Health proud and encompasses all of our culture commitments on a daily basis both on and off the clock.