Funny Girlat the August Wilson Theate.Photo: Bruce Glikas/WireImage
A nurse from Florida happened to be in the right place at the right time when she found herself mid-vacation, helping a man who collapsed while they were seeingLea Micheleperform inFunny GirlFriday night.
Nicole Horochowski told PEOPLE the details of the incident, which took place at theAugust Wilson Theatrewhile she was seeing the hit musical with her twin sister.
“It was near the end of the play. I noticed that two gentlemen actually stood up. And you notice it because you know it’s the tail end, and you go, ‘Oh, my God. I can’t believe they’re leaving the last 10 minutes,’ " Horochowski said.
“Two or three rows in front of us, they stop. And the potential patient basically says in full volume, out loud, ‘I don’t feel well.’ And then just collapsed on a person sitting on the end of the row,” she described.
A registered nurse who works in the ICU at AdventHealth in Orlando, 37-year-old Horochowski said her training kicked in once she realized the man needed assistance.
“Lea Micheleis up there singing her heart out,” she said. “I think all medical people can understand that you’re out and about, you’re not clocked in, and your first thought is, ‘Oh no I’m not working. But now I’m about to start working.’ So you give it a second.”
Nicole Horochowski
She said she counted to five in her head, ruling out the possibility that the man had tripped or “maybe had a few too many.”
“Or is this something real?,” Horochowski said she asked herself. “And it turned out to be something real. So I did get up, and you announce yourself as a nurse, and that is your duty.”
While the show went on, she went through a series of questions with the man, who she said regained his focus after about five minutes of her whispering to him in the darkened theater.
Someone called 911 while theater staff — whom she called “wonderful” — helped prepare on-site medical supplies in case they were needed. She learned through whispered conversations that the men were married.
“The man’s husband said they were married for 27 years and he didn’t want to lose the love of his life,” Horochowski said. “I got right in [the patient’s] face and I said, ‘Hey, I’m Nicole. I’m a nurse, what’s your name?’ and he stared right through me.”
Lea Michele as Fanny Brice inFunny Girl.Bruce Glikas/WireImage
She said her priority was to stay discreet and maintain the patient’s dignity, even though this was all happening in a dark theater during a performance. Speed was also of the essence.
“If Lea Michele happened to say, ‘What’s going on back there?’ You know, ‘I’ll chat with her later,’ the nurse said. “This person is priority No. 1 for these next couple of minutes.”
When the man regained his faculties, he and his husband went out the back and into a waiting ambulance. Horochowski said she doesn’t know what happened to him for sure, but is glad she was able to help.
“That’s what happens when you take your nurse pledge, and you get pinned, and you are always a nurse — on the clock, off the clock, Christmas day, or any other random day of the year. You are always a nurse,” she said.
The August Wilson Theatre did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.
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A pop culture fan, she said seeing Michele, 36, inFunny Girlwas an extraordinary experience that left her sister “hysterically crying.”
“You think it’s fake until you see it. This tiny little thing, the stuff that comes out of her mouth. It was unbelievable. So yeah, we loved it. We really, really enjoyed it,” she said, although she missed the last minutes of the show. The theater offered her swag and tickets, but she declined.
“I don’t do this for the free merch. I’m sure I’ll see the show again. But I was just glad to do my duty and hang out with my family,” she told PEOPLE
Horochowski is originally from New Jersey and was using her precious vacation time to visit her sister, brother-in-law and her nieces, who are 7 and 3. She said the trip was a surprise for the two girls, and she’d had a lovely time with her family.
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In her professional opinion, close friends and family can often be vital to healthcare diagnoses and reading warning signs.
“Recognizing that there’s a problem is always the first thing. Everyone knows what normal looks like and they may know what normal is for their family member. When something is not normal, that is when you need to call somebody,” Horochowski urged.
“Lean towards the people that know what’s going on,” she advised. “[Then see] doctors, nurses, medical professionals. If you are unsure, get yourself to the doctor, get yourself to the ER.”
source: people.com
