An ED Hoosier Nurse Story

My story was a very brief interaction but hit close to home and hopefully made a small impact on my patent and her mother.

It was a welcome week at the nearby University. Move-in week. For most, it is their first time away from home. A scary, stressful but exciting process for incoming students and their families. Adding a pandemic in the mixture just enhances those feelings.

A young freshman student arrived at the ED. She just didn't feel well. She said she had been drinking, but not too much. She had been at a concert with a few friends she had just met and decided she felt bad enough to seek medical attention. Her friends drove her to the emergency department, but due to COVID restrictions, were unable to stay with her. She received a complete workup including a COVID test. She waited for results in a closed room, isolation precautions in place, so not the normal traffic of staff checking on her. Her results were positive.

My first interaction with this patient was when I was out rounding in the department. She had pressed her call light and was needing help because her phone had died. I offered to charge her phone at the nurse’s station which she was grateful for the help. I felt the need to continue checking on her and reassured her that she was doing great and that we were taking great care of her. As I was talking with her, she reminded me of two of my sons. One is a senior in college and the other a freshman in college. My senior tested positive for COVID and thankfully he was able to drive the hour home to quarantine.

I answered the phone at the charge nurse desk and found a very worried mother on the other end. She was in Virginia and was trying to get an update on her daughter who had checked in earlier in the evening. When she gave her daughter’s name, I knew I had been at the right place at the right time. I was able to reassure her that her daughter was doing good and that I personally had had contact with her and was checking on her frequently. She began to cry, apologize, and then cry more. I assured her she had nothing to apologize for. I could understand how she was feeling.

Throughout the rest of this ED visit, I continued to check in on this young lady. I was able to have Case Management assist with arrangements for her quarantine and transportation back to the University upon discharge. I spoke to her mother one last time to give an update on where her daughter would be staying and contact information through the University. She was grateful for the time I spent with her daughter and the many updates she received.

My single goal was to help decrease this patient and her mother’s fear and stress during this time. I couldn’t help but think “what if this was my son” and I was too far away to jump in the car and be able to get to him within an hour. Such a helpless feeling that maybe I made just a little better.

- Hoosier Nurse