I just wanted to express gratitude to Karla Linton who went above and beyond and, in her case, it is probably just standard operating procedure when it came to patient care on Thursday night. A social worker had knocked on the Police ops door to report a woman who was sitting in the lobby outside of the urgent care gate needing assistance. The gate was closed because it was approximately 2000 hours. The officer and I realized that the veteran was very distraught and wanted to “check into detox” for help, her dog was with her. She had driven all the way from Bonners Ferry to seek help. I asked a medical provider in urgent care for advice on how we could assist this veteran and was told, “We are closed, she would have to go elsewhere.” I then asked who the charge nurse was and was told it was Karla Linton.

Karla immediately took charge and proceeded to provide assistance and advice to the veteran even though her shift had ended. Karla told the veteran her options and both mutually agreed that an ambulance was the best option as she hinted that “she may not make it through the night” otherwise. AMR responded and took over procedures to transport to Sacred Heart Hospital for treatment. Karla also provided a leash for the dog and resources to contact the police. Scraps was contacted and arrived to retrieve the veteran’s dog and would eventually coordinate with Happy Haven Kennel to take over for a longer possession of the dog.

Police are contacted for most incidents and sometimes are not the most appropriate for certain situations. I would put more emphasis on handling medical crises towards medical providers to at least assess the best option in getting the proper treatment. Karla Linton epitomizes what it means to truly care for our veterans, her unselfish actions and genuine care for our veterans really should be echoed by everybody that works at this facility. Being “closed” is not the only option to offer our veterans, especially those that are in obvious distress.