Nurse saves a Veteran’s life

Joey Straw, an acute care nurse at Nashville VA, went about his rounds like any other day unaware that it would be the day he would save a Veteran’s life. He stepped into his next patient’s room and began his evaluation.

His patient was recovering from a chronic illness and required extensive care in an isolation room. He was attached to a feeding tube and on dialysis to support his bodily functions. Between the tubes and the ailment, the Veteran was unable to speak for himself or alert Straw if there was an issue.

Each motion Straw performed was one of muscle memory performed hundreds of times in his 27 years of nursing. They were steps that could be easily overlooked if he wasn’t paying attention. But that is not the kind of nurse Straw is. It’s his attention to detail that saved this Veteran’s life.

During his observation, Straw noticed the Veteran’s feeding tube was caught on the dressing of the dialysis catheter located on the side of his neck.

The bright red color raised flags in his mind

“I was worried that the feeding tube was going to pull at the dressing and dislodge the catheter in his neck and he was going to bleed heavily from that. As I was redressing and moving the tube to the other side so the tubes were separate on either side of the patient, I noticed a small drop of blood,” Straw shared.

The potential for blood is not uncommon for a new patient on dialysis. It was the bright red color that raised flags in his mind. The bright red color meant the blood was fresh.

He watched as blood began to fall at a faster rate. Straw immediately placed direct pressure on the wound as he fought to stop the quickly pooling blood.

“I called for help. The charge nurses brought some dressings in for me and then I instantly called dialysis and told them that I had a situation here,” he said. Several nurses from dialysis responded to the emergency. They quickly identified a slice in the tubing.

The medical personnel quickly controlled the bleeding and then a medicine team was called in to assist. Urgent arrangements were made for interventional radiology to exchange the dialysis access.

The Veteran’s condition was stabilized and he was able to recover.

“I just took action like I thought I should.”

The speed and efficiency of the team prevented the Veteran from losing too much blood. Straw feels lucky he was there to perform the check.

“If I didn’t see the blood, the next time I came in the room, he probably would have lost a lot of blood and probably not have survived. I just feel like I was kind of lucky that I saw it when I did and then I just took action like I thought I should,” he added.

Straw’s actions earned him a Great Catch Award presented by Daniel Dücker, Tennessee Valley VA executive director. The award recognizes individuals who maintain patient safety.

In 2024, the hospital recognized 26 recipients with Great Catch awards for going above and beyond to report close calls and near misses to provide the best care to Veterans.