James L Standeford
October 2018
James L
Standeford
,
RN, ADN
Emergency Department
Central Texas Veterans Health Care System
Temple
,
TX
United States
He treated my mother as if she was his own mother. He was there for every need and tried really hard to understand when she did not make sense. He went above and beyond to take care of my mom, my Veteran.
My mom had her top teeth removed in order to start getting ready for dentures. The dentist that saw her prescribed her medication and I had ahold of her right arm with my right arm and closed the truck door when she had fallen on the ground. She said that her hand hurt and that her ribs hurt but went ahead with the dental procedure. The next day, I tried to get her to come to the ED for x-rays but her being the stubborn person that she is, she waited two more days to go in when xrays found a fracture to her left hand and masses in her lungs. They admitted her that night and she said she was not going to stay in the hospital over the weekend and that she wanted to go home. They discharged her and scheduled her for bronchoscopy the following Monday. The CT scan showed masses, and it was determined she had stage 4 lung cancer with metastasis. Soon after, she was taken to another facility for concerns, evaluated, and transferred here, where James was her nurse in the ED. He treated my mother as if she was his own mother. He was there for every need and tried really hard to understand when she did not make sense. He went above and beyond to take care of my mom, my Veteran.
I know that in the emergency department, we take care of our own, but this was different. James had told my best friend, "I will not let anything happen to her while she is in my care". Anything that she asked for, she got; anything that was needed, she received. He even convinced her to stay in the hospital for the night so that she could get the IV antibiotics she needed.
Unfortunately, she decided she wanted to come soon after and I placed my mom on hospice as I knew she was septic and would not make it without certain care and she refused these at home. My mom passed soon after and I cannot thank James enough for the care that he gave my mom while in the ED. He is like this with all of his patients but I feel he took extraordinary care of my mom. He is very deserving of the DAISY Award; he is compassionate, understanding and takes time to get to know his patients.
I know that in the emergency department, we take care of our own, but this was different. James had told my best friend, "I will not let anything happen to her while she is in my care". Anything that she asked for, she got; anything that was needed, she received. He even convinced her to stay in the hospital for the night so that she could get the IV antibiotics she needed.
Unfortunately, she decided she wanted to come soon after and I placed my mom on hospice as I knew she was septic and would not make it without certain care and she refused these at home. My mom passed soon after and I cannot thank James enough for the care that he gave my mom while in the ED. He is like this with all of his patients but I feel he took extraordinary care of my mom. He is very deserving of the DAISY Award; he is compassionate, understanding and takes time to get to know his patients.