Lead Nuclear Medicine Technologist wins Patient Safety Award

At Brigham and Women’s Faulkner Hospital, delivering safe, high-quality care is at the center of all we do for our patients and their families. For staff members who exhibit exceptional care in regards to patient safety, the hospital recognizes them with a Patient Safety Award. Lead Nuclear Medicine Technologist Stephanie Logiudice was recently honored with a Patient Safety Award.

Logiudice was nominated by Manager of Biomedical Engineering Alyssa Merkle for her work responding to a malfunctioning probe, which was potentially not only a patient safety issue but also a staff safety issue.

In the operating room, a gamma radiation detection probe began making loud noises. The device was quickly moved to Biomedical Engineering to investigate the issue. Thinking the probe might have been broken or dropped, the staff in the OR were understandably concerned about possible radioactive contamination. That’s when Logiudice stepped up. She surveyed several staff members’ hands and the room to confirm there was no exposure. She then took the opportunity to advise staff on what to do in the future should they think a probe is contaminated. She taught them to bag it and have it checked.

When she was presented with her Patient Safety Award, Executive Director of Patient Safety, Quality, Risk, Infection Control, CDI and Clinical Compliance Christi Clark Barney, MSN, RN, thanked Logiudice for being so helpful. “You were doing your job, but you also extended yourself to the staff,” Barney said. “Situations that involve radioactivity can be really scary for staff. What you did was make a whole room full of people feel safe and comfortable. And all the while, you were also teaching them. Should something like this ever happen again, they now know what to do and won’t be as scared.”