By Johnsi Amalraj
Kailasapatti, Jan 23, 2020: After my first profession as a religious nun, I was asked to go to Maharashtra to work with “Adivasi” and “Kathkari” (aboriginal and indigenous people).
They live in a remote area with no medical facilities. If someone falls sick they have to carry the person on bamboo sticks to hospitals, about 10 to 15 km away.
At times the patient would die before reaching the hospital.
I was disturbed with all this and I decided to take up this nursing profession.
I found inspiration in Mother Teresa, who said, “I see the patients as my own brothers and sisters.”
The saintly nun had also said: “Let us always meet each other with smile for the smile is the beginning of love.”
“Where there is love there is God.”
“Spread your love everywhere you go.”
“When someone is going through a storm, your silent presence is more powerful than a million empty words.”
“It is not how much you do but how much love you put in the doing.”
Such saying encouraged me to dedicate my life to serve the suffering brethren with love and compassion.
Nurses face many challenges such as the education-complexity gap, increased workload, nursing shortage, safety in the workplace and nurse burnout caused by long working hours and lack of fulfillment.
In many cases, someone becomes a nurse to help others. Bu when the reality of the job confronts them, they get disillusioned on account of the nature of their tasks, and their encounter with death and dying people every day.
Dealing with death is particularly stressful for nurses.
Interpersonal relationship is another cause for stress.
Nurses always fear contracting deadly infections when they come in contact with biological dangers, body fluids and needles.
Besides the risk of getting of illness, shift changes disrupt their life and lifestyle. They also have to attend to lot of paperwork (timely documentation).
My 12-year experience as a nurse has convinced me that nurses and midwifery health professionals contribute the most to the growth and sustainability of health care all over the world. Their services have a direct link to the people’s wellbeing and their integral development.
Nursing is not a career, but a noble vocation, unlike other jobs. Nursing is something special, as it is blessed by God. Nurses participate in the healing ministry of God. Their dedication and selfless service remind people that good still exists in the world.
Nurses see God in their patients. They touch life in its weakest stage every day. They find even the mighty people the weakest and most helpless in the hospital.
Nurses and midwives devote their lives to caring for mothers and children, giving life-saving immunization and health advice, among others.
Nursing requires a caring attitude, dedication and passion for the wellbeing of others.
Above all, an ideal nurse is compassionate, competent and committed. We cannot think of a world without nurses.
(Johnsi Amalraj is a member of Presentation congregation [PBVM]. She has worked in different places in Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu. Currently, she works as a nurse at Jeevan Jyothi Hospice, Kailasapatti, Theni district, Tamil Nadu, South India.)