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On Monday, August 3rd, Blanca Alban was conducting her daily routine checks of the restrooms before leaving for the day. It was about 3:50 pm when she entered the men’s restroom at the Chester Medical Offices, and noticed a young man lying on the floor in one of the stalls. His face was pale and he was nonresponsive.
Quickly, Blanca ran to get some help. She saw Christina Ortega, medical office assistant and temperature screener. As they ran back to the restroom, Christina told Amie Garcia, customer service representative, to initiate the emergency response page, “Nurse STAT” and “Dial 911.”
Christina immediately crawled underneath the restroom stall door to unlock it. Blanca wasn’t frightened but remained calm and stayed with the young man until the STAT Team arrived.
Charge Nurse Ryan Greenleaf administered oxygen and an IV containing Narcan. The STAT Team took other appropriate interventions, and the patient stabilized and became responsive. It was later determined this incident was a result of a possible self-administered drug overdose.
A Different Outcome
As it was late in the day when Blanca discovered the young man, there was a strong likelihood that no one would have gone into the restroom until the night crew arrived hours later. In that case, the young man might have faced a different outcome.
Blanca works for ABM, a Kaiser Permanente environmental services contractor, but is “very happy” to be part of the team at the Chester Medical Offices. She has worked at this facility for over 2 years and is highly regarded by the staff and physicians. Ryan Greenleaf stated, “Day in and day out Blanca does a fantastic job and always has a smile on her face. During what has become to be known as the ‘COVID Apocalypse of 2020,’ we have developed an even greater appreciation for her. She keeps us, our patients, and this entire MOB safe. She’s always wiping down chairs, cleaning doorknobs, wiping the stairwell handles, and everything else in between. Yesterday was just another example of how truly blessed we are to have Blanca as part of the Chester Team. On that day, she truly was that young man’s guardian angel.”
Chester MOB STAT Team Members Include:
Christina Ortega, medical office assistant
Angelina Bermudez, medical office assistant
Sheryl Gaona, medical office assistant
Kimi Brewer, RT
Phil Dang, MD
Richard Ferrell, RN (DA)
Amie Garcia, Service Representative
Ryan Greenleaf, RN (Charge Nurse)
Jill Adams, RN