Kayla Brown

As a nurse in the UPMC Passavant–Cranberry Emergency Department (ED), Kayla Brown, RN, sees many people on their worst day.

She strives to do everything she can to improve those days by being a positive presence.

“To be a positive person as much as possible, depending on the situation, can be so impactful for these patients and their families,” says Kayla, a professional staff nurse at UPMC Passavant–Cranberry.

For always looking out for her patients, Kayla is this month’s UPMC Pittsburgh Penguins Healthcare Hero Spotlight.

Kayla has worked at UPMC Passavant–Cranberry since 2018. She says she always felt drawn to the emergency department.

“You are there by the patient’s side during the good times, the bad times, the victories, the failures, all of that,” she says. “It's a beautiful thing to be a part of that. And I've always wanted to be that positive person because, especially in emergency medicine, I'm meeting patients on the worst day of their lives or what they believe is the worst day of their lives.”

Soon after Kayla became a nurse, she took training to become a forensic nurse and sexual assault nurse examiner. Those nurses care for victims of sexual violence, intimate partner violence, child abuse, elder abuse, and more.

“Forensic nursing is always something I've been interested in because you can make such an impact,” she says. “It's not an immediate impact. It's not an instant satisfaction with these cases because they take a long time to go through the court systems and whatnot. But to be that one person that can sit there and just listen to these patients and process their accounts of what happened and be their advocate … is just an amazing opportunity.”

Betsy Tedesco, DNP, clinical director, Emergency Services, UPMC Passavant, says Kayla “goes above and beyond with compassion, drive, and empathy.” Those qualities help her to succeed at work.

“Despite the patients in the ED experiencing a stressful situation, Kayla always makes them comfortable, safe, and protected,” Betsy says. “She communicates openly and makes sure that the patients and their loved ones have their questions or concerns answered.”

Kayla also is among the first people to volunteer to take on a responsibility, Betsy says. She was the first employee to volunteer to work in UPMC Passavant’s COVID-19 monoclonal antibody clinic, which provided treatments to COVID-19 patients.

She also leads her department’s employee experience council, which strives to build teamwork, communication, collaboration, and positive relationships.

“When you have the ability to openly communicate with each other, the patients have a better outcome,” Kayla says. “They have a better experience because everybody's collaborating together on what we could do for this patient.”

Betsy says the council was a major undertaking, but Kayla made it a priority. It’s an example of her dedicated approach to her job.

“Kayla is always hard-working, dedicated, compassionate, committed, and a true servant leader,” Betsy says. “She is always two feet first into any situation, always there to help, and always provides support to those around her.”

Kayla acknowledges that working in the emergency department can be emotionally taxing. But she comes to work to help patients in their most stressful situations and give them the answers they need.

“They're so incredibly vulnerable that whole time,” she says. “Just a smile or just sitting down next to them, even if it's for 30 seconds, can make such a significant difference, and it’s worth it.”

“To be able to give them an answer and help them get through this time (is so important).”