Kristina went above and beyond for a young Hispanic patient with an end-stage organ disorder. She participated in an Interdisciplinary Collaboration meeting with the patient and family to discuss overall prognosis and assess goals of care. The patient made the decision to sign DNR and transfer to hospice house for EDL. I arrived to arrange admission and transfer to hospice, and Kristina and another RN shared their concerns about the patient's understanding of the situation with me. They graciously agreed to join me to speak with the patient.
I translated their questions to the patient in Spanish and we discovered the patient was not aware vasopressors would be discontinued. The patient confided to me that he really did not understand the whole situation even though the Intensivist took his time to explain the details earlier. The patient did not want to stop vasopressors and felt confused about code status. He said, "I do not know if I should say yes or no." Kristina assured the patient he was responding to treatments, and even though this may not change his overall prognosis he still had time to think about his wishes for end of life.
The patient smiled for the first time and it was really heart-warming. Kudos to these girls for proactively advocating for this patient. I am so thankful there are nurses at WHH like them. To me, this is the definition of caring-nursing and putting the patient first.