It was a busy morning, and I had stayed over to help out after some call-ins. There was a patient on the unit who had behavioral and confusion issues and had been a sitter patient. The hustle and bustle of the morning, along with a new sitter not familiar with her diagnosis, had made the patient act out in a volatile way. She was yelling, swearing, and even throwing her walker, and refused her meds. I approached the nurse who had just gotten the report, and she made a beeline for that room, recognizing the severity of the situation.

Desiree approached the patient in a calm, respectful, and gentle manner. Desiree listened, and her body language remained calm, and her tone steady and kind while she listened to the patient, who appeared upset and grief-stricken. She was having undiagnosed medical issues, lost her appetite, and was going to have to go to a behavioral facility, so she was understandably upset. I wish I could say Desiree did something spectacular to alleviate the patients' behaviors, but the simplicity of her effectiveness was her calm and gentle demeanor, combined with her sincerity.

The situation ended with the patient calmly sitting in her chair and eventually taking her medications voluntarily. Desiree did this all at the beginning of her shift when she was just starting off and barely getting to see her other patients yet. What she was able to do with demeanor and gentleness, I've seen other nurses have to do with chemical and or physical restraints to achieve the goal. Everyone has different methods and approaches, and Desiree's approach is one to be emulated if possible. She did a great job and gave the best result to her patient.