Theresa Ruggerio
August 2021
Theresa
Ruggerio
,
RN
CLC
VA Pacific Islands Health Care System
Honolulu
,
HI
United States
At Christmas, it was Theresa who organized a parade for the veterans and their families so the family could drive by with their cars decorated and see their loved one from their cars.
Theresa was selected as the Nurse Educator for the CLC during the start of COVID. She worked closely with administration and the residents to secure the facility and help begin the year-long lock down. Theresa helped to write the new home Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) for the CLC facility. She worked overtime to ensure staff and residents were swabbed for testing. Theresa has settled into her role by teaching all the staff how to swab for COVID. At Christmas, it was Theresa who organized a parade for the veterans and their families so the family could drive by with their cars decorated and see their loved one from their cars. It was Theresa who also organized the Resident Christmas Gift party. She ensured that each resident received at least 2 gifts. If there was not enough staff to donate a gift she bought the extra gift for that resident. The residents loved the gifts, and it took some of the stress off not being able to have family there for the residents. Theresa dedicated many extra hours without asking for overtime to organize and assist with many different projects. The CLC facility has not had any COVID positive patients. This is due to the watchful eye that Theresa and the staff have maintained over the last year and a half.