Little Victories

I always enjoy the little victories, the little triumphs when you do something someone thought that you couldn't.

After returning an elderly man to his care home last night, the staff wanted to know how things had went. See, we'd picked him up earlier for being violent and refusing to take his ativan. Apparently, he'd hit a few of the staff members before we arrived.

Sure he was non-compliant when we arrived, but I managed to talk to him. I convinced him to get on my gurney and go to the hospital. I convinced him to let my partner take his blood pressure, to let me start and IV, and give him an IV dose of ativan. By the time we arrived at the ER, he was resting peacefully. He was polite and conversational.

My partner and I brought him back to his care home a few hours later and the staff was just amazed that we'd been able to do what we did. They were amazed at the patient's transformation. But even more so, they were amazed at our ability for my partner and I to do our job. And while they were amazed, I had to feel a little victorious.