Comforting a patient with a simple and kind gesture

The older woman was alone, confused and distressed.

She lives in an elder care facility and after a minor car accident, workers from the facility dropped the woman off to be checked out at the emergency department at UCHealth Longs Peak Hospital in Longmont.

Pam Carroll is an environmental services worker at Longs Peak. She particularly loves working in the emergency department.

“It’s never dull. Everybody is so nice and sweet. I just think so much of all of these doctors and nurses. They’re so dedicated. They’re wonderful, caring people,” Pam said. “They’ll jump right in and will do anything for anybody.”

So will Pam.

Her job is to keep rooms sparkling so they’ll always be ready for the next patient. Pam, 64, works throughout the hospital and has done so for four-and-a-half years, almost since the day the hospital opened its doors in 2017.

When the older woman was having a hard time, Pam happened to be walking by. She instantly guessed that the woman probably was dealing with dementia. She was sad that the woman’s care facility had left her alone. Pam set aside her own duties to help the busy nurses and went above and beyond to comfort the patient.

Pam began with a simple, kind gesture. She held the patient’s hand.

Then she sat with the woman, asked her name and got to know her.

“I asked her what she needed,” Pam recalled. “She took my hand and said, ‘You’re a redhead. I love you already.’ We had a nice conversation. I hope she enjoyed it as much as I did.”

Elizabeth Duncan, a unit clerk in the Longs Peak Emergency Department, watched Pam work her magic and later honored her coworker through a “Celebrating You” shout-out.

“The patient instantly calmed down. She was talking about her childhood. It was very sweet,” said Duncan, 19, who hopes to go to medical school someday, and like Pam, loves working at Longs Peak.

Duncan saluted Pam for always being kind.

“Sometimes we just have one housekeeper taking care of the facility,” Duncan said. “Even though she’s busy, Pam always goes out of her way to say ‘hi’ to people. She has such a great attitude about work. It’s inspiring.”

Pam has seen and done it all during her career. She spent 17 years working for the school district and prides herself on efficiently handling messes of all sorts. Along with the emergency department, she loves working in the hospital’s birthing center and the intensive care unit. She also has worked as an in-home caregiver and has a knack for interacting with older people.

“My grandma had Alzheimer’s. My grandpa had dementia. I took care of a sweet little lady with dementia. You just talk with them,” Pam said.

“I always love connecting with people,” she said. “I figure it’s part of the job to be friendly. These people are going through a lot when they’re in the hospital.”