The heart behind the badge: A day in the life of an ER nurse

Josh Ramos assisting a patient at the ER in Altamonte Springs.

Altamonte Springs, Fla. - When a patient ends up in the emergency room, it usually starts as a bad day for them, which is why AdventHealth ER nurses strive to provide the best whole-person care possible to turn things around.

“I always want to make sure that we are like a beacon of light for them, that we are a comfort for them and that we always make them feel whole,” said Josh Ramos, an ER nurse at AdventHealth Altamonte Springs.

Every day in the fast-paced ER, Ramos explains there is always something new and different and you must be ready for anything.

“Whoever walks into the door, it’s always our responsibility to make sure we’re compassionate towards our patients from a toe pain to essentially a code or a stroke alert,” he said.

On average, the emergency department at AdventHealth Altamonte Springs sees about 300 patients a day. So, from the moment Ramos clocks in for his shift, he’s on the move treating patients, making sure they’re informed and getting them discharged as quickly as possible.

“We do our rounds every 30 minutes to an hour, we always update them with what the next steps are going to be,” said Ramos. “Once they are discharged, we’re cleaning the rooms and getting another person right back in there, making sure no one is [waiting] in the lobby.”

Ramos says being a nurse isn’t just a job, it’s his calling and he feels happy knowing he’s exactly where he needs to be doing what he loves.

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