Aged Care Posting

When I first saw  Mdm K, I realised, like Ah Gong (my grandfather), she had many bruises and skin breakdown on both her arms, in varying colours too! (ranging from red to different shades of purple). She looked old and frail. 

I thought she was demented because when I asked her for her name, she told me a four-syllabus name. However, I couldn't make out the exact words and spelling of what she said but I thought it was a Japanese name and since she could really be a Japanese or demented, I thought she was the latter. Moreover, she told me her age was 35 when she obviously looked much older than that.

I realised my mistake when I turned around to look at the place and saw that the name outside Room 1 was exactly what she told me! Omg! I totally didn't expect that! First, she was still lucid enough to remember her name and second, I just assumed she wasn't and that a four-syllabus name could only be a Japanese!

I have a "natural inclination" to sayang the elderly especially when they have bruises on their arms and thus, I kept sayang-ing her while talking to her. I tried feeding her lunch too but she insisted on feeding herself with no assistance needed. Afraid that she would drop her food while bringing it from her plate to her mouth, like most elderly with dementia, I tried to use her plate to follow her spoon but she became irritated after that. She scolded me for grabbing her plate and for explaining to her my reasons. Lol. She insisted that she would not drip her food and refused to let me feed her or hold her plate. Elderly can be so stubborn. She even said I was "kpo". Haha. So fierce.

After I read her case notes, I learnt two important points about her. 1) her  2 sons "disowned" her 2) she had scabies =.= the first fact was saddening especially as it was written that she still misses one of them (if she forgets then at least it is less painful for her) the second fact was =.= omg! I just sayang-ed her everywhere sia. And how does scabies spread? Via direct contact. There are no difference whether you're a healthy young girl or a frail old lady with weaker immune system. Shit! This means my stronger immune system could not even protect me! Omg!!! I became sian after that. I should have read the case notes before touching any patient. However, the only consolation was that if she really had active scabies, the staff won't touch her too, without protecting themselves and they would inform us about her. The fact that they don't and the fact that the last report about her having scabies was in September this year probably meant that she was cured (?). I was still unconvinced and quite sian about touching or even going too near her.

The next day though, I still couldn't resist myself and kept going to her. This time round, I tried to keep my hands to myself and really did touch her LESS (instead of totally not touching her like what I should actually be doing=.=). I even told myself numerous times that if I get scabies, it's ooo..kkk.. la. If I do get it, I get it lo. Bo bian. She's worth it.

Sometimes, she felt so itchy that she asked the nurses to take out the board (in front of her chair) so that she could scratch herself properly. Of course, that wasn't attended to at all. Personally, I feel that the nurses there are quite free sometimes and they can actually just take out the board, sit with the residents and ensure that they do not fall out of their chair. However, I don't think they would ever be so nice to do this. Once, she signaled to me to help her remove the board; I explained my reasons for not being able to do so and she signaled Hui Ping to help her. When Hui Ping didn't understand her, she turned to the nurses who just brushed her aside and eventually, the resident beside her to ask for help! Sadly, that resident is slightly mentally unstable and didn't even respond to her. I think it's very sad that these people, having to live there for long periods of time, only talk to the nurses (who cannot even speak their tongue) rather than make friends with their neighbours. Just picture an old lady feeling itchy all over and failing to get help to allow her to scratch herself and relieve her itchiness. She must be feeling so terrible.. Haiz.. I tried to soothe her by talking and hoping to distracting her but to little success. I even wore gloves and helped her apply moisturizer. She also asked me to help her scratch. Lol.

I liked this lady so much that I actually went to re-read her case notes again and again to find out more about her. I specifically read the part about her skin condition because I could not bear to see her keep scratching herself and complaining about being itchy..</3 I wanted to find out what condition did she suffer from to give her so much pain (I didn't manage to figure that out). However, to my relief, I found out that she was cleared of scabies during her last dermatitis appointment! I was so happy! Mainly because I could now sayang her without fears! It is her other skin conditions (and the post-scabies) that are making her feel itchy. I feel so heart-pained for her. Poor lady.

After that, I became more willing to touch her again! I helped scratch her lightly when she complained of itchiness. She even told me not to do so because helping her scratch is dirty! Omg! Didn't expect that. Haha. I continued this on my third and last day there. I even sayang-ed her head and watched her sleep on the last day. I kind of hope all these elderly whom we interacted with would not remember us because they would then keep hoping that someone else would talk to them (?). They would then miss having us around to talk to them (?). *sigh*

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Paedatrics Posting

Even before I met H, I had already heard about him. My friends were "complaining" about him, saying he had a "bad record" with the other patients and their parents. His misdeeds were also recorded in his case notes. I also heard him using swear words freely. Though this is common, to hear it coming from a 12 year old is really quite shocking for me.

Thus, when he came over to my cubicle to find my patient, I was not too happy about it. Even when he tried to interact with me by asking me to play cards with him, I would find excuses to reject him. As I felt guilty, I agreed to play with him eventually. However, throughout the game, I was uneasy as he kept using swear words AND asking my patient to do the same. He even scolded other patients who were in the play area as well. I tried my best to steer clear of him and also hoped that he would leave my patients alone. I know I was wrong to be prejudiced against him and this is not how a nurse should behave.

Later, I found out that he is actually quite pitiful. His mother was non-existent and his father beat him frequently. This was what caused him to be hospitalized in the first place. I also heard his aunt intended to bring him overseas after he was discharged.

On my last day there, I realized that I actually cared about what happened to him. We would definitely never meet again but I hoped he would (and I told him this too) take care of himself. If no one cares for him, then all the more he should treat himself better and stay away from the "bad side"...

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