Saturday, 20 November 2021
DOES SIZE REALLY MATTER?
Thursday, 4 November 2021
MY MOST CHALLENGING SHIFT
Nurses play one of the most vital roles in delivery of care within the healthcare industry ,caring for people when they are at most vulnerable and offering support are some of the fundamental tenants of of nursing.
Night shift are horrible, but I prefer it to Day duty because I love to have my days to myself.
I was on my Second in a row and I was tired- the sort of tired where your eyes feel hot and sunken and blinking takes three to four seconds, and you never knew a reflex could be so tortuous.
Also read : Disunity In Nursing... The Way To Go
On that day , I took over ten patients, six were critical, I mean four of them on non rebreathable mask and two in NIV Helmet Ventilation but oxygen saturation was less than 60% on oxygen 15L/minutes and 45L/min respectively at that moment. I knew am in for a sleepless night.
I was monitoring vital signs every quarter hourly and also answering & calling Covering Nursing Office about state of patients and need for more oxygen cylinders, Oxygen buzzler and Alarm were the only Music tune I could here after every few hours.
Funnily enough there was also a bird that was producing a similar tone to that if Oxygen Alarm, so I had to go and check the percentage of oxygen available in the cylinders. 😂😂
My attention was drawn to one of the patient at around 1am, On getting to the him, he was already gasping, SPO2 has dropped to less down 50%....then 30%. We immediately informed the Physician , all emergency medication including CPR despite not recommended in Covid set up prove abortive. I lost my patients 😭😭
Also read: Beautiful Brainy Girl
As if that was not enough, my attention was drawn to another patient that was panting for air. I couldn't save this other patient too
I lost 2 of my patients on that dreadful night😭I was so confused and helpless.
I didn't start writing report until around 7am when I am supposed to be handing over the shift. I was tired and exhausted. And I ended up closing that shift at 1Oam.
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That day I learnt that, no matter all we do to save a patient life. What will be will surely be and that God has the final say, He alone can give and take life...
Then I look at one of the bereaved son and this quote by Arthur Golden flash my mind-
"Grief is a most peculiar thing; we're so helpless in the face of it. It's like a window that will simply open of its own accord. The room grow cold but we can do nothing but shiver. But it open a little less each time, and a little less; and one day we wonder what has become if it"
Also read: Bullying and harassment in nursing
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What really helped me that night was staying positive through out the shift and this helped a lot in achieving greater job satisfaction even though I end up losing patients , I know I have try my best.
#TheCovidNurse #TheNurse
Wednesday, 27 October 2021
HIV + And Immune Boosters
Boosting the immune system is not that easy. None of the so-called ‘immune boosters’ that you see advertised in our country have been proven to help people with HIV…the only thing they boost, is the bank accounts of the people who sell them.
Your immune system is highly complex. It consists of thousands of different cells and enzymes that interact in many complicated ways. Along with the brain, the immune system is possibly the most complicated system that exists. This is one of the reasons why it is extremely difficult to find a way to boost it. The best natural and God-given way to boost your immune system is to wash your hand evertime you eat anything, avoid eating spoilt food, having unprotected sex, avoid breathing droplets that someone has coughed out, and I dare say; avoid kissing anyhow. Germs can enter your body according to the kind microbes they are and through means I stated above. Once a germ is inside your body, your immune system goes to to war against it. You need cells known as phagocytes to attack these germs and destroy them using a number of bodily chemical weapons….and no amount of ‘immune boosters’ can do this job. It is your natural immune system and it alone that can figure out these germs and protect you against them by producing antibodies to fight them. One kind of cell involved in making all this work is a T lymphocyte (T-cell). Some of these T cells have a receptor called a CD4. CD4 cells in your body are produced naturally by your immune system…not the ‘immune boosters’.
When your CD4 is low…all you need is an ARV regimen coupled with protected sex, washing of your hands before eating, avoiding eating spoilt food and kissing…in that way you immune system can be assisted in naturally producing more CD4s to fight germs in your body and thus stay healthy…not the ‘immune boosters’…There is no scientific evidence that ‘immune boosters’ boost the immune system.
Tuesday, 26 October 2021
Determined To Give More.
Saturday, 23 October 2021
Importance Of Starting Early Antenatal Clinic in Relation To Prevention of Mother To Child Transmission
……… I had just finished with the first patient of the day: A man and his wife who had just started on ARVs. I gave them a 2 week course and asked them to come after the two weeks.. The next patient was a beautiful bubbly 8 year old girl brought in by her uncle. She was all smiles and extended her hand to greet me .
I went on to fill her prescription as I was chatting with her on how she takes her medication. I was actually impressed because she not only knew the number of pills to take but also the exact time to take the medication. Apart from the normal ARVs and Septrin she was to be put on Isoniazid preventive therapy(Used to prevent TB) .. I remember packing her a bag full of drugs to last her 1 month. All this while she looked at me.. Quite keenly then out of nowhere she asked ‘daktari sasa nikimaliza hizi dawa zote si nitakuwa nimepona na sitarudi kuzikunywa tena?’. I froze for a second… Multiple questions crisscrossed my mind.. ‘she does not know her disease? How do I tell this sweet baby that she will take these drugs for as long as she lives?How do I look into those hope filled beautiful eyes and tell her the truth? Will she even understand? My eyes filled up with tears and before they could drop, I mumbled to my colleague’ Aloli kuja umalizie hapa siskii vizuri ‘… I ran out and cried my heart out in the washroom.. When I regained my composure and went back, Nyaramba (Not her real name) had already left. Her innocent face has since not left my mind..
Today, I want to talk to you… Yes, you who may be HIV positive or negative. You who refuses to go to the HIV tests to know your status. The pregnant lady who refuses to go for antenatal and ends up getting a baby who is HIV positive. I want to talk to the spouses, girlfriends or lovers who refuse to get tested.. Who spread the virus knowingly or unknowingly. Do you sometimes sit and think of the consequences of your actions? Do you know how hard it is to explain to a child that they inherited HIV from their parents?
Get Started Today. Let’s all prevent Mother To Child Infections. The early The Better.