Student Nurses' Stories
Below, some of the nursing students at Parkway College share their learning experiences. These stories were extracted from Our First Steps, a book from Parkway College that compiles 30 such stories into a record of these nursing students' initiation into nursing. Our First Steps is available for public purchase at $2.50; if you are interested in purchasing a copy, please contact Ms Alyna Tan at alyna.tan@parkway.sg.
My Role Model by Yin Hnit Phway, Mary
"Young people need models, not critics..."
- Wooden, John
This female patient, Sheryl (pseudonym), has a private nurse, Jane (pseudonym), with her most of the time. Sheryl was in her thirties and had remained in the hospital for more than a year. After cerebral haemorrhage, Sheryl could not move, turn, talk and eat by herself though her hearing was intact. When she was tired, she would sleep and when she was awake, she would look around, like an innocent child.
I could feel the close relationship between Sheryl and Jane. When I went to her room, Sheryl would be alarmed and would not want to face the stranger. She was like a timid child. When she heard Jane’s voice, she would feel more relaxed.
I had always enjoyed working with Jane because she was ever so patient. So for two weeks, I would assist her in the delivery of nursing care every day without fail. I would take vital signs, change diaper and perform bedbath with her. Due to contractures, Sheryl was rather stiff, but Jane would work around affected joints gently. When changing diapers, Jane would clean the perineal area thoroughly and apply protective cream tenderly. With performing nasgastric tube feeding, Jane would be so careful and proficient. It was such a beautiful sight observing how she nursed her patient. I wish I could learn from her as much as possible in the way she cared for her patient and how she communicated with someone who could not speak.
It really impressed me, to notice how observant Jane was towards her patient. When Sheryl showed any discomfort due to fear, positioning or cold environment, Jane would reassure her, adjust the pillows or cover her with a blanket.
It would have taken a great deal of patience and nursing to care for Sheryl. Without the excellent care provided by Jane, Sheryl’s condition would have deteriorated rapidly. I have learned that good nursing care is very important because it has a great impact on patient’s wellbeing even though the patient might not return to normal state. We should not deliver our care carelessly. Before this clinical attachment, I could not appreciate the value of Nursing as much. Practising on classmates was not difficult as we tend to help each other and took the practising session lightly.
I look forward to being like Jane one day. She is my role model and I admire her.
Confusion and Clarity by Stanley Yip
"Every one of us needs to show how much we care for each other and, in the process, care for ourselves."
- Diana, Princess of Wales
I was attached to a medical-surgical ward in the hospital. It was a typically busy day, with all the hustle and bustle associated with a full ward. As a trainee (and a really ‘green’ one at that), I was trying to help around by attending to patients’ calls. Although it was mostly ‘fetch or inform’ requests, I did not mind as that kept me busy for most part of the afternoon shift.
As dinner time was nearing, the pantry staff came to serve the meals and I was helping out too. It was then that the nurse manager asked me to assist in feeding a particular elderly man. So I took the prepared dinner to the patient together with the nurse manager.
When we entered the dimly lit room, the elderly man was still napping. The nurse manager went up to him and gently aroused him from his sleep. In a nice cordial tone, she informed him in a blend of Mandarin and dialect that it was time for dinner. The elderly man opened his eyes and looked at us for a few moments before replying in a monosyllabic agreement. His name is Mr Sim (pseudonym) and he had cerebral oedema leading to a confused state. As a result of other co-morbidities, he had quite a prolonged stay in the hospital.
I positioned myself at the other side of the bed and together with the nurse manager we assisted Mr Sim to a more comfortable position. I proceeded to prepare the dinner tray. Although I had the necessary laboratory practice, this was still my first attempt to feed a real patient. I was a bit nervous as I removed the plastic covering the bowl of porridge. I guessed this had got to do with first-timer jitters! Under the watchful supervision of the nurse manager, I slowly and steadily fed Mr Sim. He could only take half a spoonful each time and even that he would take quite a while to swallow it.
As I fed him, I could not help but to recall my grandfather in his final days of battle with stomach cancer. Although my grandfather and Mr Sim suffered different conditions, both were confused and unable to feed by themselves. My grandfather suffered the side effects of chemotherapy and pain medications, and was almost always in a confused state. He was unable to recognise most of his family members and was always ‘seeing things’. During one of those episodes, he even told me there were crabs all over the bathroom floor and asked if I would steam crabs for him!
Somewhat similar to my late grandfather, between each mouthful, Mr Sim repeatedly asked why there were people standing around him. He wanted me to get these ‘people’ to attend a meeting! Having being assured that I was able to handle it on my own, the nurse manager left the room to attend to other matters. Remaining alone with Mr Sim in the room and with his claim of ‘people’ around us was a bit unnerving. I just put that thought out of my mind and concentrated on properly feeding him with the remaining share of the dinner with some prompting in his dialect. Then after the tenth half-spoonful of porridge, he suddenly mentioned I looked like his grandson. I just smiled at him and advised Mr Sim to finish the porridge soon, in the event when his son visited him later, he would have eaten his dinner. He agreed and took in the next mouthful. A few seconds later, without any signs, he simply fell asleep! I was stuck with more than half a bowl of porridge but he would not respond to my repeated attempt to arouse him. After checking that there was no leftover food in the mouth, in case he choked, I felt a little more assured. Coincidentally, a staff nurse came in to check if I was alright. After ascertaining that there was no food in the mouth, and he was really sleeping, the staff nurse whispered sadly that Mr Sim might not have much time left in this world. She told me to carry on with my other duties and she would bring the half-finished dinner to the pantry to be kept warm for later.
After the staff nurse left, I remained awhile longer to check on Mr Sim. He really reminded me of my grandfather. I was very saddened by his passing. Throughout his hospitalisation, the nurses had cared for him very well. His family was grateful to the nurses for they had made a difference to his last days even though the outcome was inevitable.
The nurses had really touched me and kindled enough interest in me to explore a career in Nursing. As I looked at the gently snoring patient in front of me, I realised that this was what I wanted and had chosen to do. The art of caring for another human being granted me a satisfaction that I would never experience in my previous career. This was the moment when I appreciated what others meant when they said some jobs are like work but only few professions require a true calling to join and persevere through.