Charge nurse notices visitor’s neurological symptoms, takes action

When a patient’s husband arrived to accompany her in the preoperative area ahead of surgery at UCHealth Medical Center of the Rockies, charge nurse Ashley Yergler quickly realized something wasn’t right.

“I went out to the waiting room, said his name, and asked, ‘Who are you here for?’” Yergler said. “And he said the complete wrong name.”

She went back to the patient to double-check on the husband’s identity, and the patient mentioned her husband had been acting oddly the previous couple days. Yergler returned to the waiting room. The man seemed confused. She noticed some facial drooping and indication of neurological changes, then promptly called the nurse response team.

The husband was transported to the emergency department and quickly received treatment.

“Many people would only focus on the patient and not the family member, but Ashley was able to help two patients that day,” according to a colleague who nominated her for internal Celebrating You recognition.

“I was just doing my job,” Yergler said. “It was very obvious something was wrong with him.”

Nicole Kamtz, nurse manager with MCR perioperative services, said Yergler is a role model setting the highest standard of care. As a leader, she enables a collaborative working environment and leads by example to ensure the best patient care and experience.

“She is always seeking ways to improve the lives of those we serve while maintaining excellence in practice and integrity,” Kamtz said. “We are proud to have her on our team.”

Yergler, with UCHealth since 2019, said she knew since childhood that she wanted to be a nurse, as a family member had frequently required care.

“We were in and out of hospitals a lot,” she said, adding that she always appreciated how much the nurses cared.