I have always held nurses in the highest regard, but after listening to the horrific stories from a terminally ill friend, I have to ask the question, what happens when carers stop caring? I believe nursing to be a vocation and have known some wonderful men and women in this profession, but surely even they realize when it’s time to move on to another field of work. Senior staff members in my friend’s hospital agree that many of the nurses have become desensitized to the suffering of their patients. It would be impossible to do their job without a certain amount of desensitization, but when they look at someone who is suffering and feel nothing, it does not bode well. I’ll give you two examples of what I’m talking about. My friend is having a very bad reaction to the chemo and continuously vomiting, after buzzing for the nurse, in the hope of getting some pain relief, she arrived in the room asking, “what’s the problem?”
When my friend told her she was in pain and needed something to help her, the nurse then asked, “What do you want me to do?
When she asked for pain relief and inquired if that amount of vomiting was normal, the nurse replied.
“I am not a doctor neither am I am diagnostician.”
The second example happened the following morning. My friend has chosen to chemo over surgery and when she rang the nurse for some pain relief, she was given it with the words, “If you had chosen surgery, you wouldn’t have to put up with this.”
I know the cutback are making life hell for hospital staff, but when they can look at someone who is suffering like my friend and not think, there but for the grace of God go I, it’s a bad look out for all of us.
gemmamawdsley 