Behind every great man there’s a great woman they say. But how about — behind every great doctor there’s a great nurse?
My mother is a nurse and I remember growing up and how tired she would be when she’d come home. That’s to say, the few times I would actually catch her when she’d arrive, because usually I’d be long asleep by then.
Like so many nurses, my mom pretty much worked around the clock.
We often praise doctors for their hard work and so we should, but we also often forget the hard and important work our nurses do. Without them, I don’t think most doctors would be able to do their jobs and I think if you ask any doctor, they would probably agree.
Therefore, we thought as a way of honoring all nurses out there, to share a story by one nurse from Toowoomba, Australia.
Her name is Caitlin Brassington. One day in October last year, a person’s comment about her being a nurse really got to her. So she decided to post about it on her Facebook page.
That post has since been shared over 5,000 times and spread like a wildfire online.
Here’s what Caitlin had to say that day.
“‘Just a Nurse’.”
“I am just home from a busy shift, looking very ordinary in my scrubs. On the way home today I stopped at the shop for milk and saw an acquaintance. She has never seen me in uniform and said that she didn’t realise I was ‘just a nurse’.”
“Wow! Over my 18 year career I have heard this phrase many, many times, but today it got to me. Am I just a nurse?”
“I have helped babies into the world, many of whom needed assistance to take their first breath, and yet I am just a nurse.”
“I have held patients hands and ensured their dignity while they take their last breath, and yet I am just a nurse.”
“I have counselled grieving parents after the loss of a child, and yet I am just a nurse.”
“I have performed CPR on patients and brought them back to life, and yet I am just a nurse.”
“I am the medical officers eyes, ears and hands with the ability to assess, treat and manage your illness, and yet I am just a nurse.”
“I can ascultate every lung field on a newborn and assess which field may have a decreased air entry, and yet I am just a nurse.”
“I can educate patients, carers, and junior nurses, and yet I am just a nurse.”
“I am my patients advocate in a health system that does not always put my patients best interest first, and yet I am just a nurse.”
“I will miss Christmas Days, my children’s birthdays, and school musicals to come to work to care for your loved one, and yet I am just a nurse.”
“I can take blood, cannulate and suture a wound, and yet I am just a nurse.”
“I can manage a cardiac arrest in a newborn, a child or an adult, and yet I am just a nurse.”
“I can tell you the dosage of adrenaline or amiodarone based on weight that your child may need to bring them back to life, and yet I am just a nurse.”
“I have the experience and knowledge that has saved people’s lives. So, if I am just a nurse, then I am ridiculously proud to be one!”
Cover photo: Flickr/COD Newsroom
Wow talk about a powerful statement from a proud nurse!
Please share to honor all our hardworking and important nurses out there. We appreciate everything you do for us.
Published by Newsner, please like.
