JPS Health Network nurses work every day to make sure their patients receive the best care possible.
And four registered nurses in the Tower 3 Integrated Specialty Unit -- Dakari Dibi, Jessica Thompson, Evelyne Bosire and Sharmilla Bhattarai – went beyond the call of duty when their sharp eyes and decisive actions caused them to pick up on something out of the ordinary not with a patient – but with someone visiting a family member.
“The nurses spent some time getting to know the family of the patient when people visited and because of that, they were able to detect some subtle changes in the visiting family member,” said fellow T3 RN Ashley Hall who nominated her colleagues for a JPS Good Catch Award. “On previous visits, the man was getting around easily. But nurses noticed one day that he seemed to be having some problems with his balance, leaning on the wall to steady himself. He just didn’t seem the same to them.”
The nurses became concerned that the visitor may have been suffering a stroke. They convinced the man to let them put him in a wheelchair and take him to the Emergency Department for an immediate examination.
“He had a seizure right as they got him to triage,” Hall said. “Because of the quick thinking of the nurses, he got to where he needed to be right on time.”
The visitor was able to receive care in the Emergency Department and was admitted to the hospital.
JPS team members can nominate their peers for a Good Catch Award if they witness their colleague doing something to make a patient, a peer or even a visitor safer. Each month the Patient Safety & Quality Governance Committee selects top good catches and recipients get a signed baseball, a Good Catch pin and receive points in the enhanced Employee Rewards and Recognition Program.