PICU Clinical Care Team at Children's National Hospital
May 2024
PICU Clinical Care Team
at Children's National Hospital
Children's National Hospital
Washington
,
DC
United States
Kristen Black RN,
Brittany Davis, RN,
Tracie Shlagel RN,
Allyson Lenoci RN,
Maddie Crowl RN,
Monique Anderson RN,
Edward Botchway RT,
Lisa Goto MD,
Terry Dean MD,
Kelly Cline MD,
Dana Herrar MD,
Aimee Phipps LCSW,
Rosa Garcia, Interpreter services,
the MRI department.
Brittany Davis, RN,
Tracie Shlagel RN,
Allyson Lenoci RN,
Maddie Crowl RN,
Monique Anderson RN,
Edward Botchway RT,
Lisa Goto MD,
Terry Dean MD,
Kelly Cline MD,
Dana Herrar MD,
Aimee Phipps LCSW,
Rosa Garcia, Interpreter services,
the MRI department.
I would like to nominate the PICU team for their actions recently when it came to the safe admitting, assessing, triaging, and transporting of a critically ill child. At approximately 1:30 pm, we admitted a patient from the ER who was presumed to have meningitis. She was promptly intubated with the help of the PICU team. We had physicians, PICU nurses, charge nurses, and PICU educators assisting with the intubation, as well as respiratory therapists. We rapidly drew up medications, safely administered them, and expeditiously intubated the patient successfully. While all of this was occurring, we had an in-person Spanish interpreter explaining to the mother, along with social work updates on the patient’s condition. Neuro Critical Care wanted additional imaging to support the diagnosis, as well as treatment for this patient. MRI was promptly notified and arranged for the PICU to go down to the scanner following intubation. We were able to have all of the aforementioned tasks completed in two hours, which is an amazing feat considering the multiple parties involved. We were fully committed to getting the patient the imaging they needed in an efficient, safe, and timely manner in an effort to improve patient outcomes. It is not often that all parties move so efficiently and quickly with no hiccups, yet today, we operated as if it were a well-oiled machine. Although clichéd, it was a beautiful dance of all involved parties prioritizing patient care and making sure that everyone was on the same page. It was an honor to observe the activities of today, and it was inspiring for all those involved.