March 2024
Trinia
Greene
,
BSN, RN
Tower 7B
Baptist Medical Center Jacksonville
Jacksonville
,
FL
United States
Trinia offered to walk them to the welcome desk, but the young lady was still frozen with fear and wasn't budging. She noticed her hands trembling while she was trying to use her phone to translate.
Recently, Trinia was not able to clock out until 10 AM due to charting and completing STARS reports. On her way out she made it all the way to the breezeway in between Wolfson’s and the Bowery Tower, when she noticed two women talking, and stated her gut started turning and she felt something wasn’t right. Though she was tired and wished to go home, she couldn’t ignore that feeling, and approached the two women, asking how they were doing. Trinia described that in response, she saw a young lady with wide eyes desperately looking at her while a Baptist security officer asked her if she had a language translator device. Since Trinia did not have one, she encouraged them to go to a nursing station where they could find an interpreter iPad, but the young lady would not budge from her location. Trinia offered to walk them to the welcome desk, but the young lady was still frozen with fear and wasn't budging. She noticed her hands trembling while she was trying to use her phone to translate. The security officer explained to Trinia that she was under the impression that the young lady was here seeking medical help or looking for a family member or friend to visit, however; what the young lady kept telling her through the phone translation app was, "Ethiopia. I want Ethiopia." Trinia then explained that she tried introducing herself to the young lady by pointing to her badge picture and saying her name, and the security officer did the same, that’s the first time they saw the young lady crack a smile as she introduced herself. The young lady sat on the bench, so Trinia followed her actions and noticed a passport in the young lady’s hands. Though Trinia and the security officer tried to learn more information about the young lady, the information they gathered was broken, and all they could make out were phrases such as: "I did not want to go back to him," "I have a sponsor," and "I need Ethiopia." Trinia then stated that she and the security officer discussed whether they thought this could be a human trafficking case and asked the young lady how she got to America, to which she replied it was a game she wouldn't know anything about. Trinia took a chance and let the young lady know that she was at Baptist Hospital, a safe place, and no one will hurt her here. The young lady then started crying, and Trinia decided to stop another nurse in the hallway and ask if he could call the house supervisor. The house supervisor promptly came down to help them. The house supervisor introduced themselves in the same way, and the young lady continued to reveal her story to them. The group was able to persuade her to walk to the ER with them where they could use a translating device. The ER team helped by ensuring all team members caring for this young lady were female providers, and helping to turn off her location tracking apps on her phone. They were then joined by a CNA from tower 5 who the nurse from the hallway was able to find to help translate. The young lady was then able to build a rapport with the tower 5 CNA, and had stopped trembling, and Trinia was able to go home. It was a beautiful thing to know that Baptist Health truly keeps their vision and mission statement, and see this interdisciplinary team come together to help this patient. Take your time and pay attention to the small details and those gut feelings, they can make all the difference.