A few weeks ago, UCP of NYC resident Roger was sitting in the living room watching a movie. Due to Roger’s medical condition, he has to spend most of the day in bed. The staff began to notice that Roger wasn’t behaving like himself and decided to take him back to bed.
What staff was catching on to was the fact that Roger was having one of his silent seizures. UCP employee Shameka Terrell, who has been working at the IRA as a direct support professional for the past three years, jumped into action with the assistance of the Residential Program Specialist staff: Louis Cruz, Virgen Padrone, Rockema Johnson and Njeri Williams, to assess the situation.
Director Zuleika Liriano said, “It was incredible to see our staff display such teamwork and use critical life-saving skills that they had learned at our trainings to save Roger’s life.”
Once Shameka determined that Roger was not responding, she performed chest compressions and CPR, while Ava quickly dialed 911. Before EMS arrived, Roger was almost back to his normal self. Due to the fact that Roger’s seizure was the first time he had lost complete consciousness, he was admitted to the hospital as a precaution. Today, Roger is back at his home and doing much better!
There are many examples of great team work and professionalism at UCP of NYC. With this critical incident occurring right before the holidays, the team reflected on how precious life can be and how valuable a professional and caring team really is. Like Roger, we at UCP of NYC are grateful for our expert staff that remains dedicated and prepared, no matter what the day may bring.
