Whether they’re working in a doctor’s office or an operating room, our team members impact the lives of patients every day by calling upon their extensive training and expertise.
Sometimes, their training can make all the difference outside of a medical setting as well.
This was the case recently at a child’s birthday party attended by Jennifer Elliott, CST, a certified surgical technologist who works alongside board-certified Orthopaedic Surgeon Dr. Phuc Vo.
As the kids were jumping on trampolines, eating and playing at an amusement center, one child went into distress when he started choking on a piece of candy. Struggling, the child approached his mother, unable to breathe. "His mother is a nurse," Jennifer said. "But when it’s your own child, panic can set in."
Jennifer, who was attending the party with her own son, responded quickly and stepped in to take action. She performed the Heimlich maneuver on the boy and successfully dislodged the candy.
"He went right back to the table with his friends and started eating pizza as if nothing happened," she laughed. The boy’s mother was incredibly grateful to Jennifer for her quick thinking, calm demeanor and decisive action.
Ironically, Jennifer had recently renewed her Basic Life Support certification. This training proved essential in saving a child’s life that day.
We salute Jennifer for her heroic efforts!