I Made a Difference winners from 2017!

Congratulations to the “I Made a Difference” contest winners! The winners from each community of care – Vancouver, Coastal and Richmond have been awarded a complimentary registration to the BC Patient Safety Quality Council’s Quality Forum 2018. The winner for the team with the most submissions will be receiving the coffee break prize. Here are our winners…

Vancouver WINNER – Isabelle Bertrand

Isabelle Bertrand

Isabelle’s winning I Made a Difference story submission:

Last week, I worked with a patient who has advanced dementia. She was speaking non-sensically and agitated to the point of punching me in the stomach, scratching me several times, yelling constantly, and throwing her lunch tray at me so that the plate shattered and the tea soaked all through my shoes. After ruling out constipation, need to void, pain, hunger, thirst and other possible causes of the behaviour, I cautiously sat with her and played her some music on my phone. When Elvis Presley’s “I Can’t Help Falling in Love with You” came on, she went quiet and began speaking the lyrics along with the song. Shortly after, her daughter arrived on the unit. It seemed like some sense of the emotion of the song remained with my patient, as she was able to suddenly tell her daughter things like “I love you so much, more than anything, forever, forever, love”. The way the daughter reacted was clear that the dementia had prevented her mother from saying things like this to her for a long time. I couldn’t help but cry along with the daughter as she received this brief and rare sense of connection with her mother, and feel proud I had a small part in it.

Richmond WINNER – Brenda Wagner

L to R: Jennifer MacKenzie, chief operating officer – Richmond; Brenda Wagner, social worker; Lisa Stewart, interim director Clinical Quality & Patient Safety.

 Brenda’s winning I Made a Difference story submission:

The spouse of one of our residents was diagnosed with cancer.  As his health deteriorated he expressed the desire to be admitted to our facility and die near his wife.  With awesome team work (and a little good fortune) we were able to admit him to a room right across the hall from his wife when he was no longer able to look after himself.  He died with his wife at his bedside holding his hand.

Coastal WINNER – Bella Bella Team

R.W. Large Memorial Hospital staff who were involved in a recent tele-PICU patient case include Sian Carter (PCC/Educator), Dr. Payman Nabai (MD), Gary Housty (Manager of Clinical Services), Susan Chatelier (RN), and Emily Godsil (RN).

Bella Bella’s winning I Made a Difference story submission:

Our team was able to make a HUGE difference in the life of a child and family.

A 10 year old patient presented one evening in severe distress. The patient had a rare condition called CPT1 deficiency. When a child with this condition becomes sick, they are at high risk of decompensating rapidly and can possibly go into hypoglycemic shock.

Our team was a strong advocate for this patient by assisting with rapid intervention for the care of this child. We supported the child and her family and were able to relocate them to a close observation room and use our brand new Telehealth equipment to dial BCCH. Within 90 minutes of arrival, the family, patient, MD and nursing team were face-to-face consulting with the Pediatric ICU Intensivist and a Nurse Specialist. These professionals were able to guide our care planning and interventions for effective management of this patient. The face-to-face interaction also served to provide reassurance and consolation for a very worried family.

This is a great example of client and family-centered care; the outcome was positive and many lessons were learned through this experience. The parents of this patient were both thankful for the collaboration of the team, as well as the level of care received during their stay.

Most Submissions WINNER (59) – Richmond 3 Medicine Sub-Acute

Related:
“I made a difference” contest winners and finalists

Digital Health Week: Bella Bella’s connection to BC Children’s Hospital tele-PICU a life saver