FINAL DESTINATION

I've survived my first week of PRCP.

Technically, I've only worked 2 days in my new ward, with the first 3 days being an 8am-4.30pm shift, consisting of a solid orientation program from the hospital.

Jerryl got quite a lot of shit from some other students during the orientation. Without a doubt, he will always be part-attention seeking-part-obnoxious, but at least he's not afraid to be himself and doesn't vilify others in the process. The same cannot be said about other people.

There was this bastard who sat behind me who kept bitching about Jerryl and seriously pissed me off. That lame fucker asked me not to saboh him when I shouted to Jerryl in the front, informing him that the lame prick had some issues with him.

You got the guts to chirp like a bird behind but no guts to say to his face meh? Fucker.

Don't ask me what possessed me. It just ignited this sense of injustice. My motherly instincts just went into overdrive. Maybe I'm part of some justice league or whatever. I also don’t know.

Jerryl may be a bastard, but he was my classmate, so that makes him MY (in the utmost non sexual context) bastard. What right do you have to pick on him? You're neither perfect or empowered with that right ok?

I think the educators did a pretty good job with the orientation. The hard work they put in was almost blinding. Unfortunately, some students had mile high expectations.

So to each their own lah.

That aside, Fad and I did manage to snag a couple of treats each during the Q&As. And meals with Chicken and Fad were great fun. The laughs came in bucket loads. Chicken, in particular loves the wall with the ‘puffer fish’ picture. It sends her chuckling everytime.

I know you like that, dontcha?! *raises eyebrow*

I'm proud to be part of my hospital - it's attained more merits then most hospitals and has many options to further education. The director of nursing dropped by, exuding a humility beyond ordinary. She didn't need to put the nurses in other institutions down. She ranted on about their own success stories. She spoke of how much of an asset we would be in the wards. It was a good feeling.

She possessed a quite strength deficient in others. And it fired the spark that will (hopefully) burn through another 5 long weeks.

Currently, I'm posted to a Haemato (blood) ward. It's a small ward with an attached clinic. In the beginning, I was horrified to find myself posted to Central. Again?!

*vehement convulsions -> physical contortions*

You see, I have issues with Central units.

Fortuitously, God read me like a book and answered my howls =)

My unit is in charge of taking care of post stem cell transplant patients. With a max load of 3 patients, there's a deceptive appearance of being able to slack. Well, you couldn't be more wrong. There's a shit load of work to be done, and only 1 SN there with me.

The upside to this is independence. And that the SN HAS no choice but to teach me something (anything) to enable me to function in a positive manner to help ease her load.

Everybody there needs multiple blood transfusions per day, toileting needs to be met, strict isolation precautions to adhere to, endless questions from relatives to address etc etc.

To date, I have helped to (all under supervision though)
1. Check the blood products awaiting infusion
2. Labeled and dispatched forms
3. Withdrawn blood from central catheters
4. Balanced shift IOs
5. Served medications
6. (Memorized by heart) how to use the portering service and trace online results

Not too bad for 2 days, I presume.

The SN could even feel at ease to leave me alone on Friday while she went on her break. It was a little scary even though the NC was just a stone's throw away. A patient developed a transfusion reaction and I had to summon the doctor and notify the NC. Luckily, a good dose of IV antihistamines rectified matters and the patient stabilized.

The staff here are really great. Thus far, I've not experienced any haughty contempt from them at all. I realize politics will always be present, nonetheless, I'm steering clear of any uncalled for drama.

We don't have the luxury of having a preceptor or CI around, but the ward NCs are always available on hand to offer guidance. One of them even stressed the importance of prioritizing family before work.

“You put family first and the rest falls into place”

Even the student from the other shift at my side is really willing to share. We exchange notes and stuff that we've learnt everyday. Cheers to her!

The patients in my ward are mostly ambulant to a certain extent. The challenge is winning them over, since they're mostly long-stayers and know what needs to be done and how to go about about doing it. Whatever you do has to be done with confidence and speed, else they tell you not to return.

And common drugs used there differ greatly from the norm DM-antihypertensive combo found at other wards. Over here, we mainly use antifungals, antibacterials, antivirals, antihistamines etc. And everything through the central line. So there's a lot of getting used to here. One slip and you may induce a prompt backflow of blood into the catheter and clog the damned line or introduce an infection.

I've learnt a good lot thus far.

Just 5 more weeks and my friends and I will be graduating into the ranks of becoming a SN. It's a dream I’m envisioning already.