I am a first responder(firefighter/EMT)because of the nuttiness of the last two plus years. Healthcare has lost some wonderful and tenured personnel. And because of this, those left to care for the sick are being stretched thin. Edwin, I can tell you are a man of faith. May God strengthen you and your team! God bless you brother continue to fight a good fight… Mark, Lt. SCFD
The health of this country is what will determine our future. You are on the frontlines of what our future holds for all of us. We all need prayers and someone to give us faith and hope that the future will start to improve.
Within 15 minutes every red room was filled with a monitored patient. A chest pain in #1, a diabetic who had fainted in #2, a man in shock with a supraventricular tachycardia of more than 200 beats per minute in #3A, a patient with severe asthma in #3B, a woman with congestive heart failure in #3C and a man with myocardial infarction in room #4. But that wasn’t the end of it. A few minutes later there were three patients in the hall in front of the nurse’s station hooked up to portable monitors. Each of these patients required a complete work-up including blood analysis, ABGs, urinalysis, pulse oximeter, ECGs, monitors, portable chest X-rays and frequent vital signs. Histories had to be obtained, reports from paramedics carefully recorded, physical assessments made; their lives were in our hands.
As the scene unfolded Tuesday morning, I thought, “How can I possibly deal with 9 potentially critical patients all at once, and at the same time be expected to see a child with fever in #9, patients with abdominal pain, lacerations and back sprains in #10, a senior citizen who had fallen, possibly breaking her arm, in #5A, a lady with carpal tunnel syndrome in #5B, and an eye injury in room #7. If that wasn’t enough, a woman with her newborn baby, who had been delivered by paramedics in the ambulance, arrived to add to the excitement. How could I possibly be responsible for knowing about all these patients, diagnosing their problems, managing their care, talking to their physicians and arranging for admission to the hospital?” And yet, we did it. And we did it with efficiency, expertise and with compassion.
The answer is that our Emergency Department at Baptist Medical Center is staffed with an extraordinary group of professional nurses. Nurses who do not know the meaning of the term “It’s not my job,” who eagerly and willingly assume responsibility and do more than could be reasonably expected of any one person.
As the day progressed, the white room filled with the usual nursing home patients with their plugged catheters, wound infections, gangrenous legs, weak and dizzy spells and pneumonias. Mary changed their putrid dressings and Jamie started IVs in their fragile veins. Young ladies arrived moaning with gall bladder attacks. And they kept coming in. Karen called the EMS dispatcher. I talked to Dr. Gordon (EMS medical director) and begged for relief. “No more monitored patients,” I said. “We can’t handle them.”
Even so a man with chest pain walked in off the street and had to be put somewhere. Victor quickly rearranged some patients and went to work easing the man’s pain. Eddie spirited a patient away on a stretcher and Kathy took a hot gall bladder to sonogram. An AIDS patient who attempted suicide with an overdose was brought in to #1 and required immediate attention. Dr. Zaldivar arrived to help me in my predicament. Within an hour, 21 additional patients were stacked up waiting to be seen, and yet there were no beds in the hospital for our critical patients and we had to keep them in the Emergency Department. Attending physicians came in and commented, “This is a zoo! How can you handle this?” Gary and Tony said, “This is great! Keep them coming. This is just like Vietnam.”
I called for more troops. Dr. Ross soon arrived, seeing accident victims in the hall, talking to distraught family members while Chaplain Wheeler counseled a young lady bent on committing suicide. Pat and Bud survived the avalanche of paperwork while calling attending physicians, finding lost lab reports and fixing stuck printers. Janet raced around the green and blue rooms carrying out my orders while Lucy and Rob cleaned up the mess.
In the midst of all this commotion, the power went out. Emergency generators came on and when the power was restored, we found that 3 of our precious monitors had blown out. I thought to myself, “If ever a situation taxed the limits of our patience, our expertise and our commitment, this is it.” I know one thing. I could not have handled this situation alone. I could not even have handled it with a dozen ordinary nurses, but then none of our nurses are ordinary.
Ami and Eloise worked through their lunch hour, through their break period and on into 12 hours without a bite to eat. There was not a complaint. It just had to be done. Even Jake, Joel and Frank got into the act, starting IVs, giving medications and calling attendings. Everyone pitched in to provide our patients with the care they needed and deserved.
That night while I was driving home I reflected, “Why do they do it? And why do I do it? What reward do we get for our efforts, other than becoming exhausted, developing calluses on our hands, exposing ourselves to AIDS and tuberculosis, being humiliated by patients’ ungrateful comments or frustrated by family’s demands? It’s certainly not for the pay. Any of these nurses are smart enough, experienced and capable enough to work in a cushy doctor’s office or industrial clinic.” What is their motivation? Is it the excitement of the hour? Certainly we love the challenge and the excitement, but excitement becomes old as the stomach churns for food. Is it because there is no other way to make a living? No. Plenty of jobs are available in other places. Was it to be promoted or to be praised by supervisors? I doubt if anyone from administration even saw what happened on Tuesday. Is it because of the satisfaction and deep sense of self worth for having saved lives and helped people in desperate situations? This must be it. Is it the sense of teamwork, the word “we”, helping each other through difficult times? Is it the small voice deep within us that says, “No one else can or will do this.”? Is it the satisfaction that comes at the end of the day, when we lay our head down on our pillows to sleep, knowing that we have left the world a better place than we found it?
As God looks down upon us, I am sure he says, “These nurses are very special people. These are examples of the best of my children. Candles in a dark night; love in a world of hate and violence; compassion in an age of selfishness.”
Whatever the reasons, whatever the motives, I am proud of every one. I am blessed to be associated with such truly great people and I appreciate what they have done. Are we ready for another day like March 16th? I clearly heard someone say “KEEP THEM COMING!”
Edwin, God bless!
I am a first responder(firefighter/EMT)because of the nuttiness of the last two plus years. Healthcare has lost some wonderful and tenured personnel. And because of this, those left to care for the sick are being stretched thin. Edwin, I can tell you are a man of faith. May God strengthen you and your team! God bless you brother continue to fight a good fight… Mark, Lt. SCFD
The health of this country is what will determine our future. You are on the frontlines of what our future holds for all of us. We all need prayers and someone to give us faith and hope that the future will start to improve.
KEEP THEM COMING! THE SITUATION NEVER CHANGES
By Larry J. Miller M.D.
March 16, 2001
Within 15 minutes every red room was filled with a monitored patient. A chest pain in #1, a diabetic who had fainted in #2, a man in shock with a supraventricular tachycardia of more than 200 beats per minute in #3A, a patient with severe asthma in #3B, a woman with congestive heart failure in #3C and a man with myocardial infarction in room #4. But that wasn’t the end of it. A few minutes later there were three patients in the hall in front of the nurse’s station hooked up to portable monitors. Each of these patients required a complete work-up including blood analysis, ABGs, urinalysis, pulse oximeter, ECGs, monitors, portable chest X-rays and frequent vital signs. Histories had to be obtained, reports from paramedics carefully recorded, physical assessments made; their lives were in our hands.
As the scene unfolded Tuesday morning, I thought, “How can I possibly deal with 9 potentially critical patients all at once, and at the same time be expected to see a child with fever in #9, patients with abdominal pain, lacerations and back sprains in #10, a senior citizen who had fallen, possibly breaking her arm, in #5A, a lady with carpal tunnel syndrome in #5B, and an eye injury in room #7. If that wasn’t enough, a woman with her newborn baby, who had been delivered by paramedics in the ambulance, arrived to add to the excitement. How could I possibly be responsible for knowing about all these patients, diagnosing their problems, managing their care, talking to their physicians and arranging for admission to the hospital?” And yet, we did it. And we did it with efficiency, expertise and with compassion.
The answer is that our Emergency Department at Baptist Medical Center is staffed with an extraordinary group of professional nurses. Nurses who do not know the meaning of the term “It’s not my job,” who eagerly and willingly assume responsibility and do more than could be reasonably expected of any one person.
As the day progressed, the white room filled with the usual nursing home patients with their plugged catheters, wound infections, gangrenous legs, weak and dizzy spells and pneumonias. Mary changed their putrid dressings and Jamie started IVs in their fragile veins. Young ladies arrived moaning with gall bladder attacks. And they kept coming in. Karen called the EMS dispatcher. I talked to Dr. Gordon (EMS medical director) and begged for relief. “No more monitored patients,” I said. “We can’t handle them.”
Even so a man with chest pain walked in off the street and had to be put somewhere. Victor quickly rearranged some patients and went to work easing the man’s pain. Eddie spirited a patient away on a stretcher and Kathy took a hot gall bladder to sonogram. An AIDS patient who attempted suicide with an overdose was brought in to #1 and required immediate attention. Dr. Zaldivar arrived to help me in my predicament. Within an hour, 21 additional patients were stacked up waiting to be seen, and yet there were no beds in the hospital for our critical patients and we had to keep them in the Emergency Department. Attending physicians came in and commented, “This is a zoo! How can you handle this?” Gary and Tony said, “This is great! Keep them coming. This is just like Vietnam.”
I called for more troops. Dr. Ross soon arrived, seeing accident victims in the hall, talking to distraught family members while Chaplain Wheeler counseled a young lady bent on committing suicide. Pat and Bud survived the avalanche of paperwork while calling attending physicians, finding lost lab reports and fixing stuck printers. Janet raced around the green and blue rooms carrying out my orders while Lucy and Rob cleaned up the mess.
In the midst of all this commotion, the power went out. Emergency generators came on and when the power was restored, we found that 3 of our precious monitors had blown out. I thought to myself, “If ever a situation taxed the limits of our patience, our expertise and our commitment, this is it.” I know one thing. I could not have handled this situation alone. I could not even have handled it with a dozen ordinary nurses, but then none of our nurses are ordinary.
Ami and Eloise worked through their lunch hour, through their break period and on into 12 hours without a bite to eat. There was not a complaint. It just had to be done. Even Jake, Joel and Frank got into the act, starting IVs, giving medications and calling attendings. Everyone pitched in to provide our patients with the care they needed and deserved.
That night while I was driving home I reflected, “Why do they do it? And why do I do it? What reward do we get for our efforts, other than becoming exhausted, developing calluses on our hands, exposing ourselves to AIDS and tuberculosis, being humiliated by patients’ ungrateful comments or frustrated by family’s demands? It’s certainly not for the pay. Any of these nurses are smart enough, experienced and capable enough to work in a cushy doctor’s office or industrial clinic.” What is their motivation? Is it the excitement of the hour? Certainly we love the challenge and the excitement, but excitement becomes old as the stomach churns for food. Is it because there is no other way to make a living? No. Plenty of jobs are available in other places. Was it to be promoted or to be praised by supervisors? I doubt if anyone from administration even saw what happened on Tuesday. Is it because of the satisfaction and deep sense of self worth for having saved lives and helped people in desperate situations? This must be it. Is it the sense of teamwork, the word “we”, helping each other through difficult times? Is it the small voice deep within us that says, “No one else can or will do this.”? Is it the satisfaction that comes at the end of the day, when we lay our head down on our pillows to sleep, knowing that we have left the world a better place than we found it?
As God looks down upon us, I am sure he says, “These nurses are very special people. These are examples of the best of my children. Candles in a dark night; love in a world of hate and violence; compassion in an age of selfishness.”
Whatever the reasons, whatever the motives, I am proud of every one. I am blessed to be associated with such truly great people and I appreciate what they have done. Are we ready for another day like March 16th? I clearly heard someone say “KEEP THEM COMING!”