Today, I want to talk to you about the amazing nurse Claudia Thompson. Claudia always cares about her patients, and I’ve seen her always go above and beyond. She truly cares. This isn’t about everyday interaction. This is about my family, my uncle, to be exact. My uncle is a great man. He has two kids at home, both with severe Cerebral Palsy. His wife (my aunt) passed away right before covid unexpectedly. It was devastating, and my uncle has done everything for those boys, even neglecting his own care.

He came into the emergency department last week thinking his stomach pain was just his diverticulitis acting up. No big deal, right? Claudia was in triage and had first contact with my uncle. She listened to his issues and just thought something wasn’t right. It bugged her, and she just wasn’t happy with the prospect of him sitting in the ED for hours while waiting to get a room. You see, the wait time that day was around 6 hours. She followed her nursing intuition and got him a CT with contrast. If not for peace of mind but to at least confirm his diverticulitis. You see, my uncle did not want to stay. He needed to get back home to his sons. He told Claudia that he was going to leave and deal with the pain and come back another time. That uneasy feeling came back, and Claudia was able to talk him into staying.

Thankfully, she did; she saved his life. The CT scan came back that he had a perforated duodenum. If he had left the hospital, my cousins, who are both non-verbal, would have woken up to another deceased parent. Claudia checked on him throughout his stay. He said she was absolutely amazing and that she truly cares about her patients, and that’s why she stayed! Claudia’s compassion, skill set, and keen observation skills saved my uncle’s life. She is truly an asset to this hospital and deserves so much more than I can begin to explain.