Lindsay Curtis, RN, nurse manager for the NICU at Intermountain Medical Center, was on her way home from work on a Friday evening when she received a text from her director — the patient tower was severely short on nurses, and did she have anyone who could help?
“They were short seven nurses in the ICU, and seven more on the medical/surgical floor,” says Lindsay. “Our unit has a Facebook page and I posted to it that I was going back to help, and could anyone come with me?”
Susan Redd, Tyler Dunyon, and Melissa Codella, all RNs in the NICU, volunteered to help. Susan floated to the Respiratory ICU, Melissa to the Shock Trauma ICU, and Tyler to the Cardiac ICU.
“I was scheduled to work already but I said I’d be willing to float and help if needed,” says Susan. “I’ve never worked with adults. I was hired in the NICU right out of nursing school. The thought of caring for adults terrified me, but knowing they were short 14 nurses scared me more.”
“NICU nurses become very specialized,” says Lindsay. “We don’t take care of patients larger than ten pounds, so caring for adults can be terrifying.”
While each of them individually shared the anxiety of working in an unfamiliar area and caring for patients outside of their expertise, they also found they weren’t as unprepared as they initially feared.
“While training with a nurse in the STICU, I learned a lot in a short amount of time,” says Melissa, who’d just come off a day shift to help. “She made me feel really at home and safe. She also said that although I’m from the NICU, I had a huge advantage over the other nurses because I came from an ICU floor.”
Understanding what the equipment is, knowing the terminology, and having dealt with ICU patients already, even the tiny ones they normally care for, offered some comfort and familiarity in an otherwise unfamiliar environment. The regular nurses in these units, grateful for the assistance, were also key in making them feel safe, welcome, and at ease.
“I headed up to the RICU,” says Susan, “and fortunately was on the elevator with the nurse in charge that night. He was so great to give me a quick tour and showed me where to go for huddle. It became apparent pretty quickly that having nurses float to this unit was a regular thing. I was grateful everyone was so helpful, kind, and willing to teach me so I could help.”
“We’re very qualified to do this job,” says Melissa. “We may feel lost and out of place, but the people on these ICUs are so thankful for everyone they get to train. And I’m grateful to Intermountain for giving us the opportunity to train and feel more comfortable on these units.”
Overcoming their anxiety, being made to feel welcome and at home, and ultimately realizing their training and experience more than compensated for their unfamiliarity in adult care, each of these caregivers not only expressed thanks for the opportunity, but also a willingness and interest in helping out more in the future.
“The experience was awesome,” says Lindsay. “I’m so proud of them, and my entire team of caregivers.”