A Sense of Security

We caught up with Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNS), Carol St. Henry from St. Joseph Mercy Oakland Hospital in Pontiac, MI. Carol has served in the healthcare industry for over 30 years now and has described the coronavirus pandemic as the scariest thing she has ever been through in her expansive career. Because of COVID-19, every day she is at work her health is under threat, and so she has turned to RPB products to ensure she gets home safely every day.

Why did you choose a career in healthcare?

I knew at a young age I wanted to be a nurse. When I was 4 my grandmother and I would walk to the grocery store and she would buy me a treat if I were good. I always picked a medical kit. I went to OCC AND NMU for undergrad and became a nurse in 1989. In 2005 I graduated from U of M Flint with a Masters of Science in Anesthesia. I have been a CRNA ever since.

What do you love most about being a CRNA?

My favorite thing about my job is taking care of people and the variety of cases. Every day it’s something new and different.

What does your role look like, day to day?

I’m in the operating room or offsite daily. The CRNAs respond to all the Code Blues and Anesthesia STATs. We never know if the patient is COVID-19 positive or under investigation until we get to the room. I take my PAPR with me to all the codes and actually wore it for an entire case when the patient was Covid positive and needed surgery.

What has your experience been like using our respiratory protection and how does it make you feel?

I love having my own PAPR. It’s a sense of security. I know it has been cleaned well. I can use it whenever I feel I need to. When I work a night shift I have it out and set up so I can put it on quickly. I feel safe and protected when I wear it. It is such a comfort to own my own one. I know it is clean and in working order. It’s a sense of relief.

What features of our products do you like best?

I love that the PPE is light weight, the batteries stay charged for a long time and it’s easy to hear people and for them to hear you.

Why is safety important to you?

Safety in the Covid environment is so important. The CRNAs are in patients’ airways all day long every day. We get exposed the aerosolized particles all the time and are at a huge risk to get infections. In the beginning I was so afraid to bring Covid back to my family. So protecting myself also protects those I love.

Our core value at RPB is protecting people for life’s best moments. What are your life’s best moments?

My life’s best moments are when I was finally able to hug my family members again last fall. And to be able to spend time with them face to face.

Going to the Super Bowl as a guest of the NFL and having second row seat was such an amazing experience. I was able to feel so much hope and excitement. We will win this battle.