Elisha Valmonte, BSN, RN, had just started her shift on Penn Presbyterian Medical Center’s trauma-surgical intensive care unit (TSICU) when she learned that a woman who had been admitted after a traumatic fall was declining rapidly. Despite exhaustive efforts to stabilize her, it was too late, and her family made the devastating, but selfless decision to deem her a “donor by cardiac death.” As Valmonte and charge nurse Karen Lomas, BSN, CCRN, transported the patient to the operating room for the last time, they couldn’t help but feel there was something missing.
“The moment we began to wheel her away from her loved ones, I realized there must be something more that we could do for these families who are giving such wonderful, important gifts,” Valmonte said. “I looked at Karen in the elevator, overwhelmed, and she mentioned that she’d seen videos of Honor Walks on social media. It clicked.”
Honor walks have been gaining traction in ICUs nationwide following a viral video shared by the University of Vermont Medical Center. The process is simple, but powerful. As a patient-donor embarks on their final journey to the OR, nurses, physicians, leaders, and ancillary staff silently line the hallways to show their respect and gratitude. This outpouring of support bolsters grieving family members during a time of immense loss, while also illuminating the impact of organ donation. This sacrifice offers a second chance at life to as many as eight people, and dozens more if they are also a tissue donor.
Valmonte and Lomas agreed that honor walks seemed like the perfect way to do more for heartbroken families and to support staff. The duo teamed up with nursing leadership, ICU nurse managers, and clinical nurse specialists to develop a dignified, patient- and family-centered process to bring the practice to PPMC.
If a family consents to donation following a conversation with Gift of Life Donor Program, nursing staff then initiate a discussion about an honor walk. Families can participate, stay behind, or opt out entirely; whether or not a walk takes place is entirely dependent on their wishes. Once Gift of Life identifies matches and secures an OR time, each ICU’s honor walk champion begins lining up their staff to pay tribute. PPMC has held two walks so far, and both received overwhelmingly positive responses from family members and staff alike.
“An honor walk really can be beneficial for everyone. It provides a moment to pause and reflect on the patient’s life, on our appreciation for the family, on the hope they’re giving someone else,” Lomas said. “Elisha and I will also present our findings to the rest of the Health System at the Nursing Shared Governance retreat in October. This is so much bigger than us, and we look forward to seeing it spread.”