The Saturday before Christmas, my best friend's long-time fiancé, R, was in a very bad car accident. Marie and her husband were right behind him and saw it all. They immediately went into action. The car was smoking, so they carefully pulled R from the threat and moved him to a safer area where Marie immediately assessed him. She assessed his A+O and pulses. He was in so much pain and so scared and she calmed him. She applied pressure to his leg, which had been very badly hurt. She was there for R's mental and physical health. When R reached the hospital, both his tibia and fibula were badly broken with a lot of missing bone. Tendons and ligaments had been severed. His leg was holding on barely and they were discussing amputation. Fortunately, they found a pedal pulse and doppler. I think Marie, with all her knowledge and quick action, helped save his leg. After finding a pulse and picking up the heartbeat on doppler, the surgical team changed their plan to salvage the leg. R is at home resting now, but his leg has a long recovery. This situation could have been much worse and life-threatening if not for the excellent nursing and quick thinking of Marie Hickman. She is truly an exceptional, multi-faceted nurse.