Often times in our profession, we tend to judge people….especially drug abusers.

Lisa Stiles looked far beyond her patient’s problems to offer quality care. Her patient was admitted from the ED, he was lethargic, had a positive drug screen, and track marks all over his body. The patient had a wife and young child that the nurse contacted to get information. She never judged or criticized his lifestyle instead she offered her caring heart to him and his family. After getting to know him for a couple of hours, she became worried when his lethargy seemed to change….not getting better but worsening. She called his MD and his family multiple times to alert them and to her dismay his lifestyle continued to be judged by others. Despite negative feedback she continued to stand up and speak for this patient as his advocate. She became frustrated when she felt that her instincts/questions were being ignored but she continued to stand up as his advocate! The patient did not know how strongly his nurse was fighting for him but his family and other co-workers witnessed her desire to get the help that he deserved as a human and not as an addict.