A staff emergency to the Radiology area was paged overhead at the Primary Care clinic in Elk Grove. Lizeth responded and obtained the vital signs of this patient. The patient was responsive and alert, but her vitals were not normal. The patient was just seen by their PCP in the office. It was determined after a physician’s response to this event that the patient should return to an exam room for further evaluation by the PCP. Lizeth noticed a change again in the patient. The patient then slumped over and lost consciousness.

Lizeth lowered the patient to the floor with the help of a medical assistant, told staff to call another staff emergency, call 911, then began CPR. All emergency equipment had been taken away following the physician’s decision to have the patient return to the exam room. The patient was revived and transported to the hospital. An incident report was initiated to document the change in the level of care in the office. Lizeth made a change to our local emergency response requiring that all emergency equipment remains on site near the patient until the patient is cleared or transported.

Lizeth responds to staff emergencies in a calm manner, demonstrating compassion, professionalism, and confidence. Lizeth is a role model in our clinic. Lizeth worked for UC Davis University Pediatric Associates before transferring to the Elk Grove clinic as a Medical Assistant. Lizeth pursued her nursing license while working in Elk Grove in a full-time capacity. The culture that she has fostered under the direction of her Nurse Manager in Elk Grove, to share information, provide thoughtful and proper training to staff, and address deficiencies has helped back-office staff to be more comfortable working through challenging and emergent situations. Lizeth has been the point of contact for training per diem / float staff as part of their new hire onboarding process. Lizeth has provided thorough and detailed training, feedback, and completion of all required competencies in a timely fashion.