Saturday 14 December 2019

A nurse's story

When I was in hospital for my prostate operation in 2017, I was aware of how busy the nurses were, scurrying from one patient to another checking their vital signs, keeping an eye on whatever equipment they were plugged into, giving them help of one kind or another. But I didn't know the half of it.

A book by the former nurse Christie Watson* reveals the reality of a nurse's job and just how demanding and meticulous and scary and messy it can be. I can only admire those resilient souls who take on such a difficult job and do it so well.
  • They have to clean up shit, piss, vomit, diarrhoea, blood and all sorts of foul liquids that a sick patient produces.
  • They have to give patients the right medicine, at the right dosage, in the right way, at the right time. One tiny slip can lead to a major emergency or even death.
  • They may work very long shifts (often night shifts) of 12 hours or more with barely time to eat or use the toilet, such is the relentless pressure.
  • They have to be familiar with hundreds of common or less common medical conditions and how each is treated.
  • They need to be alert to the smallest change in a patient's condition that means urgent action is needed.
It's not a job for dawdlers or the faint-hearted. They do it for the satisfaction of helping very sick people become fit and healthy again, and seeing pain and terror and misery replaced by smiling, grateful faces. They want to do a job that really means something, not just a pen-pushing office job.

Quite a few nurses don't last the course. Sooner or late they realise they're not up to the unremitting demands and responsibilities of the job and they quit.

Jenny was a nurse for a while. My sister Heather was a nurse for a while. My niece Lucy has just qualified as a Registered Nurse and I applaud her for it. I think of all the pain and suffering she will relieve and the many hundreds of lives she will save.

*The Language of Kindness: A Nurse's Story by Christie Watson

18 comments:

  1. My oldest daughter and son-in-law are nurses. Yes, if you are full-time hospital staff, you work three 12 hour shifts per week, but the 12 hours is lengthened because you need to arrive early and stay late to be updated on each patient. No meal breaks and often no potty breaks.

    They both love the actual work, but the abuse by patients and patient family members is what takes a toll. Being bitten, having things thrown at them, verbal and sexual abuse. The list goes on!

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    1. Bijoux: I believe there's a lot of abuse of nurses in the UK too. A lot of abuse against service workers in general. People are getting so impatient and self-indulgent.

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  2. Having been in hospitals on six occasions for major surgeries and also having employed round the clock nursing for my late father at home, I know just how tough the jobs of nurses are and I have a great amount of respect and admiration for their commitment and dedication to their profession.

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    1. Ramana: Their commitment and dedication is remarkable. And there is currently a shortage of about 40,000 NHS nurses, which means existing nurses are under even greater pressure.

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  3. Such a tough and so often thankless career Nick. I have a couple of doctors in my extended family but only one nurse who burned out. I don't know how they do it. Truly. Heroes and heroines.

    XO
    WWW

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    1. www: Heroes and heroines indeed. It takes a very special kind of person to cope with the incredible demands of the job.

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  4. this is a wonderful post.
    I literally owe my life to four of those nurses. when I had the stent put into my heart the LAD … or widow maker. supposedly a routine procedure... in the recovery room I went into full cardiac arrest. I could feel it happening. it moved up my body and I called out please help me! I think I'm dying. and indeed I did. everything went black and I was gone. I recovered consciousness with four concerned faces peering down at me. two on each side of my bed. the crash cart was at the end. I will never forget them. I do not trust doctors. give me a good NURSE any day of the week. they are worth their weight in GOLD!

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    1. Tammy: Thank you! And thank goodness those nurses managed to save you. I think a lot of nurses are more knowledgeable than the doctors.

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  5. My favorite nurse was the one who took time out of her busy schedule to wheel my bed down to the nursery so I could see my newborn when each of us was confined to bed.

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    1. Linda: That was a lovely thing to do for you. Nurses go the extra mile so often.

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  6. They deserve a lot more respect than they get. :(

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    1. Jean: They do. But abuse is now fashionable, respect less so.

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  7. I've fortunate enough to have a great primary care doctor. My most recent visit though was with a nurse practitioner (an advanced practice registered nurse and a type of mid-level practitioner) for an a wellness assessment. It was SO in depth and she was so caring.

    Unfortunately, we have spent all to many hours in hospitals in recent years visiting ill, injured and/or terminal family. We have great respect for those who nurse and ALWAYS treat them with respect. If there's one who is less than courteous, short-tempered or brusque, we don't know what she/he's been experiencing. We still appreciate their work and the fact that they are there where they are needed.

    (We are always considerate with service workers and are often bemused when they thank us for being patient. How else would we be? I don't understand the abuse that some people inflict on others.)

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    1. Mike: What's impressive is that nurses are invariably polite, patient and caring even when they're under intolerable pressures and run off their feet. I also fail to understand why people are so rude to service workers. Sheer selfishness and arrogance I guess.

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  8. I agree that nurses are to be admired. I too once aspired to become a Florence Nightingale. On par with my wish (I was only twelve years old) to become a nun. My father never knew about the latter but talked me out of the former. Nurse? Doctor more like it.

    As personal experience goes, there is always the exception to the rule. A few years ago I came to after a relatively minor op to be discharged on the same day. Instead of letting me rest and the fallout of the anaesthetic wear off this young nurse couldn't get rid of me fast enough (it was the end of her shift). To this day I have nothing but disdain for someone who made me vaccate my bed before I was ready and sick as a rabbit in due course. Good job my son had arrived by then. THAT nurse got her just deserts once MATRON realized what she had done. It was shameful. But, yes, let one bad apple not spoil the brew.

    U

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    1. Ursula: As you say, one bad apple doesn't spoil the rest. Maybe she was desperate to get home for some reason - a sick family member, a stack of household chores, or just total exhaustion? But that's no excuse for shoving you out before you were ready to go.

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  9. My husband is a nurse now. It's messy work at times. But he's in a clinic rather than a hospital, which I think helps.

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    1. Agent: Good for him, retraining to do something that suits him better. I imagine the pace is less hectic in a clinic, but I may be wrong.

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