Tanner Martin Wins AHMC BEE Award

Diagnostic lab work is a crucial piece of many patients’ plan of care, enabling providers to accurately diagnose and track medical issues while helping people manage chronic conditions with accurate, up-to-date information on their health and wellness.

But for many individuals – especially young children and their parents – visiting a hospital’s outpatient lab can be a nerve-wracking affair. The prospect of a painful needle-stick during routine procedures like a blood draw can be frightening for a child, and parents often worry about how much their little one understands about what is going on – and how to keep them calm during the appointment.

For Whitney Dupra and her six-year-old son, Gatlin, who recently visited Alice Hyde’s lab in preparation for Gatlin’s upcoming ear surgery, that anxiety and stress was significantly reduced by phlebotomist Tanner Martin, who connected with Gatlin during their early morning walk-in appointment. Even though her son had already been through a similar surgical procedure and knew what to expect, Dupra said, he was still anxious.

“Gatlin is very shy and quiet – and a little nervous most of the time, so the hospital is a scary experience for him,” she said. “You have needles coming at you; people you don’t know; big machines and loud noises. He was very nervous about going in that day.”

Dupra’s anxiety for her son’s comfort and peace-of-mind began to ease almost immediately, when it became clear that they would not only be seen quickly, but would be taken care of by Tanner.

“We weren’t even in the waiting room for two minutes before Tanner came out with a big smile on his face,” she said. “He got down on one knee and talked to Gatlin directly, on his level. That’s something I really like: that he was talking and explaining it to Gatlin. As a mom … that made me feel so much better right away.”

While it’s not uncommon for parents to be asked to restrain a young child during procedures that involve a needle-stick, Tanner’s tactics during Gatlin’s blood draw focused on making sure his young patient understood what was happening and what was coming next. Dupra said she saw the positive effect it had on her son.

“It makes it less scary, because it’s not being forced,” she said.

When Gatlin struggled briefly with the needle prick, she and Tanner worked together to calm and reassure him that everything was OK and that the experience would be over quickly.

“He had such compassion for Gatlin,” Dupra said. “That’s what really got my heart as a mom: I saw Tanner feeling for Gatlin when he was scared.”

Tanner’s kindness made all the difference in the moment, Dupra said, and the lab’s ability to see Gatlin quickly early in the morning and without an appointment was an added bonus.

“We were out of there in ten minutes. It was such a great experience,” she said. “As a parent getting my kid to school, I was very stressed. But it was great through the whole hospital that morning.”

Dupra said she was so pleased that she called her mother to chat about Tanner, and learned that he had already made an impression on both her and other patients throughout the community.

“People say he’s just very compassionate; a very hard worker,” said Dupra. “It’s really nice to have someone in that situation that’s happy to help and has a smile on their face.”