Acting fast to help eye surgery patient with heart problem

Like her mother and grandmother before her, Jenny Romero felt compelled to become a nurse.

Her mother’s compassion for patients continues to inspire her as a charge nurse at the UCHealth Sue Anschutz-Rodgers Eye Center at University of Colorado Hospital on the Anschutz Medical Campus.

Recently, Romero put her own compassion to work while checking in a patient for eye surgery.

She noticed some abnormalities with the patient’s heart rhythm and asked about his medical history.

“He said he’d been noticing some fluttering in his chest on and off for the last two years and went to his primary care provider, but they didn’t find anything wrong,” Romero said. “I alerted the anesthesia provider, who was very concerned and ordered an EKG. It confirmed he had atrial fibrillation.”

Patients with newly diagnosed, untreated atrial fibrillation (Afib) are at a higher risk of stroke or heart attack. As a result, doctors decided to postpone the patient’s eye surgery until he could be properly treated with medication.

But Romero’s role didn’t stop there. When she learned that the hospital’s emergency department was full, she asked the patient if there was an internal medicine practice near his house where he would want to be seen and then began calling potential clinics.

“I spoke to a nurse, and she had a hard time understanding that I was actually a nurse calling and advocating for my patient,” Romero said, adding that she answered many questions and explained the urgency of the situation. “There actually was an opening that same day, and the patient was able to talk to her and set up the appointment.”

Romero said she was relieved to get the appointment so quickly because of the risks associated with Afib. She contacted the surgery schedulers to inform them of the situation, asking them to reschedule his surgery.

“The patient was very grateful,” she said. “He thanked me a bunch of times and thanked the anesthesiologist and the surgeon, saying, ‘Maybe you saved my life. I’ll never know, but thank you so much.’”

Suzanne Sortman, eye surgery center manager at University of Colorado Hospital, praised Romero for going above and beyond in helping the patient.

“Jenny defines exemplary in her practice,” she said. “She provides this caliber of care every day that she is here. She does not think twice about the time it takes to perform some of these time-consuming tasks. It’s all about the patient for her. I am humbled by her nursing practice and compassionate methods.”

Romero humbly insists that everyone on her team makes these efforts every day and that any of her relief charge nurses would have done exactly the same thing. Everyone on the team works to accommodate the patients, including rescheduling appointments if need be, and reaching out to resources and transportation, she added.

“All our O.R. nurses, staff and surgeons are so supportive and really take the time to talk to patients, educate them about the procedure, and make them feel comfortable. It makes my job that much easier.”

Romero has been with UCHealth for 10 years and at the Eye Center for the past two. She wouldn’t trade her profession for any other.

“I always was really good at math and would have made my dad very proud if I’d become an engineer, but I didn’t see as much meaning in it as health care where you’re helping people every day,” she said.