A 32 y/o lady was brought in to our ER via advanced life support ambulance. She had a blood glucose level of 51. It was a really crazy night- all our nurses were busy and the priority at the moment was not this patient. I helped the medics unload her into the gurney and I started taking her vitals and started the history for the nurses. She was not that sick sick but boy, she really was in bad shape. 203/105. 102bpm. 96% sat. 96F. She was diaphoretic and very cool to touch. I had everything ready when the nurse came in and I then stepped out to get her warm blankets.
"Who called the ambulance?" I thought to myself. Obviously there might be family members around. Such a dumb question to myself. Why that question popped up- I had no clue.
"Hey Jasmine thank you for calling the ambulance, okay?" The patient uttered with a heavily-detectable hispanic accent. Who is Jasmine?
I turned to her bedside. Jasmine is her 10-year-old daughter.
Tonight, my greatest mentor and teacher wasn't Dr. Shapiro, MD, nor the ER Nurses, nor my MCAT textbook and flashcards. It was a ten-year-old girl. She taught me presence of mind- the ability to act deliberately and correctly given the circumstance, however pressing it may be. How amazing is it that a child like her can be taken for granted and blatantly overlooked, yet the same child could teach you a very important lesson that you'd only expect from seasoned adults.
"Good job!" I told her. She had the biggest smile I've ever seen in such a long time. And I know that it stems beyond my adulation to her. It saved her mom...The only one she's got.
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