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There are only 10 in the nation, and the Clinical Center is privileged to be home to one. Darlene Frasher, a clinical research nurse in the CC’s Surgical Intensive Care Unit, has been named a Nurse Hero by “Nursing Spectrum” magazine and the American Red Cross.
Frasher, who resides in Vienna, Va., with her husband and children, was honored at a ceremony in May during National Nurses Week at the Red Cross national headquarters for “going above and beyond the call of duty in saving or attempting to save a life under adverse conditions.”
“I feel honored,” said Frasher of the award. “But, I think the incident was a lot bigger than me. I was a small player in it.” She was nominated and selected for her heroism and courage when saving the life of David Marks in July 1998.
While visiting Cabbage Key Island, Fla., during a summer vacation, the Frasher family sought refuge from a severe storm in a small island restaurant. Within minutes, a loud lightning bolt deafened local ears. “I remember a man saying, ‘That hit something,’” she said.
Two young boys then burst into the restaurant, crying about their injured father. Frasher immediately sprang to her feet. “I’m a nurse, I can help,” she said.
The lightning bolt indeed made a direct hit; it struck 43-year-old Marks.
After running down an embankment, Frasher found Marks in a pontoon boat, with a dime-size bum on the right side of his head. She had him moved to shore in hopes of resuscitating him and discovered he had gone into full cardiac arrest — his lips were blue, he had no pulse, and was not breathing.
Marks, also visiting the area, had been caught at sea during the storm and was trying to get himself and his two sons safely to land when the bolt hit. After assessing the situation through the pelting rain, Frasher began performing mouth-to-mouth CPR on Marks. Aside from her annual certification, this was the first time she had performed CPR in her 15 years of nursing.
“I guess that certification really paid off,” she said.
A rescue helicopter was unable to land due to deteriorating weather, and Frasher had heard that a rescue boat was called upon.
During the wait, Frasher continued working with Marks. He soon had a weak pulse, then a stronger one. She continued rescue breathing and sought to get a response from him to establish his mental condition.
“Along with his kids, I screamed to him: ‘Squeeze my hand, Dad; please, squeeze my hand,”’ she said.
As the rescue boat was arriving, she finally got a faint squeeze.
“I didn’t think about anything,” she said of the incident. “I was focused on compression and breathing.”
Today, Marks is almost fully recovered from the incident, as the lightning bum on his temple has healed and he only suffers a slight hearing loss and minor cardiac damage.
“It was a great humanitarian act,” said husband Wayne Frasher, who witnessed the event and nominated his wife for the award. “I don’t know many people who have the courage and fortitude to never say no. It’s remarkable. She is such a beautiful lady all the way through. She deserves this award.”
“It’s a pleasure and honor to work with someone like Darlene,” said Allison Adams-McLean, unit coordinator. “Her professionalism just carries through in all her aspects of care. She adds a different dimension to nursing.”
-by Bonnie Flock