Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Monday, June 8, 2009
Update, June 8, 2009
Here it is, June 8th, and my London experience is on the wind down. I presently have three teenagers sharing my London closet, and it is truly a good experience, as two of them are discovering the new thrill of international travel, Stephanie and Paige. They are very impressive travelers, as they have been compiling lists of destinations and have been getting out in the city, taking buses and tube travel to their destinations. Tonight we are all going to see The Woman in Black, live theater, at the Fortune Theater. We have dinner reservations afterwards, for pizza and champagne. I hope to be posting pictures soon.
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
Back in London!!!
Yeah!!! We made it back to London. Quick update of our last moments in Gaza. Joel, our traveling companion, came with us for a layover here. He and Madeline did a quick run around London, hitting the high notes. Then we 3 had a wonderful meal at Mondelo's, with wine!!!! Lovey!!!!! Have I said, I never warmed up to the Egypt/Gaza food. This trip has been somewhat of a weight loss program for me!
Our last day we went to a hospital that had been severely bombed, but it is still functioning despite the devastation. It was confusing to me, though, because there did not seem to be many patients. We went to a patient floor where I was told there were 4 patients, 3 nurses, and one nursing student. I was able to see a room with a patient and his family in it, and it was very spacious. I was told they do 150 elective surgeries a month as well as emergencies. There were no patients in the emergency room. I asked about payment of the elective surgeries, and if I understood correctly, they are private pay. There is also another hospital in Gaza that we were not taken to, so I would have been curious to see what the census at that hospital was.
Side note: The term "refugee", refers to people who lost their land/homes to Israelis 60 years ago, and they still remain in this status. They receive education, health care, money, and food from UNRWA, which is separate from the rest of Gazans. I heard that Gazans are known to say they would like that status to receive those benefits! Ibrahim's family were refugees, but they have become successful business people and were able to leave the refugee camps, and now consider themselves Gazans. However, if the topic comes up with his grandmother, she becomes very agitated with the topic, as the history is still alive and well with her. Apparently, these refugees are still holding out hope that they will be returning to their homeland, and they have the keys for these homes they left so long ago. Ibrahim took me to a refugee camp the morning of our departure, as it was not on the delegation schedule. The main characteristics of a camp is a narrow main road not wide enough for a car, and extremely narrow side road where a person may have to walk sideways. The homes are very dense, but despite it all, quite tidy. I later learned that one of the reasons Gaza is so much cleaner than Egypt is the trash service that is provided by the UNRWA every day.
Later that day we ended up at a hotel on the coast to unwind for a bit. The kids ordered sheeshas (hookas), and sat around smoking. If I have not said earlier, sheesha smoking is done everywhere. There are many, many tea bars that also serve sheesha, and the kids really enjoy it. While at the hotel, a group from ISM came, which I learned is an organization that provides human shields for humanitarian causes, such as the fishing boats of Gaza that are constantly getting shot at by the Israelis. An Italian man was with them who had been on a boat, seized by the Israelis, and tortured by them with cigarette burns on his arms. I was not with the group when they were there, but was concerned that they may have been looking for recruits!
Back to Ibrahim's. Tara and Ib had bought a carpet earlier that day, as Ib said it was the ultimate gift that a person could give. As I really wanted to express my thankfulness to his family, I had them pick one up that day, and Tara and I gave it to them. They seemed very pleased. Madeline picked up an orange tree for her family, which I thought was a lovely gift, too. According to her, the father kept rubbing the leaves throughout the evening.
Side note: Madeline and her student buddy went swimming with their host family in the sea. Women can swim, but they have to be fully clothed. She said they had a great time out past the waves and were there for an hour. The father had a life ring tied with a rope to his waist. Apparently, he has saved many a swimmer from drowning, and goes out prepared to do so.
That evening, Ib's family had a couple of health issues that they wanted to discuss, and wanted my opinion. It is very challenging to give advice when the health care seems sketchy. Ib's dad had gone to Cairo for health care as apparently, what he needed he could not receive in Gaza. As he is wealthy by Gazan standards, he had the personal funds to make the trip for more advice. But I was told that Palestinians are not treated well by the Egyptians. Ib's father has cardiac disease, diabetes that has not been controlled, and who knows what else. When I met him in Cairo, he showed me his foot with a sore on it, and he kept saying something like "high blood sugar". Fortunately, it did not look infected......... He had nothing done in Cairo. He and his wife have been waiting in Al Arish waiting for enough Palestinians to gather there to make it worth the Egyptians time to process them for entry back into Gaza. side note, because of his ill health, he was allowed an exception to leave Gaza in the first place.
The following morning was our departure day. We all gathered at the hotel to board the bus. Tara was staying. She has plans to get a job with UNRWA, and apply for graduate school in the UK along with Ibrahim, and to possibly eventually marry. It appeared to be very hard on her to see us leave, as she was very emotional. And I have to say, it was hard on me, too, to be leaving my niece in Gaza. Another student is staying as well, as she was offered a temporary job with another organization that was an exceptional opportunity. So I am glad that Tara has someone to connect with right away.
We drove to the border for entry back into Egypt. One of the Gazan organizers was to go with us who had an Egyptian passport, but, sadly, she was not allowed. It took several hours for our processing, but we were finally back in Egypt, a land of the more free than Gaza world. We drove back to Cairo, and this time I was able to enjoy the drive. How beautiful it was!!! The sand dunes mixed with palm trees. The Bedouin camps with the camels!! The Suez Canal! Wonderful drive.
Madeline, Joel, and I rechecked into the Hotel Pension Roma, and it felt like a 5 star hotel. We re-slathered with bug spray, ate some dinner, retired to bed where we listened to the loud-speaker of the call to prayer amplified into our bedroom. Ahhh......back in Cairo!!! Next day, London!!!!!
Joel will leave today. Madeline and I are looking forward to having Stephanie Graf and her girlfriend, Paige, come visit us for a few days. It will be fun showing them London, and mabey a side trip out of town. Following that, Madeline and I may be going to Barcelona for a few days, then back to Portland, Oregon, USA!!!!!!!! Yeah galore!!!!!
please excuse any typos and grammatical errors!!!!
Our last day we went to a hospital that had been severely bombed, but it is still functioning despite the devastation. It was confusing to me, though, because there did not seem to be many patients. We went to a patient floor where I was told there were 4 patients, 3 nurses, and one nursing student. I was able to see a room with a patient and his family in it, and it was very spacious. I was told they do 150 elective surgeries a month as well as emergencies. There were no patients in the emergency room. I asked about payment of the elective surgeries, and if I understood correctly, they are private pay. There is also another hospital in Gaza that we were not taken to, so I would have been curious to see what the census at that hospital was.
Side note: The term "refugee", refers to people who lost their land/homes to Israelis 60 years ago, and they still remain in this status. They receive education, health care, money, and food from UNRWA, which is separate from the rest of Gazans. I heard that Gazans are known to say they would like that status to receive those benefits! Ibrahim's family were refugees, but they have become successful business people and were able to leave the refugee camps, and now consider themselves Gazans. However, if the topic comes up with his grandmother, she becomes very agitated with the topic, as the history is still alive and well with her. Apparently, these refugees are still holding out hope that they will be returning to their homeland, and they have the keys for these homes they left so long ago. Ibrahim took me to a refugee camp the morning of our departure, as it was not on the delegation schedule. The main characteristics of a camp is a narrow main road not wide enough for a car, and extremely narrow side road where a person may have to walk sideways. The homes are very dense, but despite it all, quite tidy. I later learned that one of the reasons Gaza is so much cleaner than Egypt is the trash service that is provided by the UNRWA every day.
Later that day we ended up at a hotel on the coast to unwind for a bit. The kids ordered sheeshas (hookas), and sat around smoking. If I have not said earlier, sheesha smoking is done everywhere. There are many, many tea bars that also serve sheesha, and the kids really enjoy it. While at the hotel, a group from ISM came, which I learned is an organization that provides human shields for humanitarian causes, such as the fishing boats of Gaza that are constantly getting shot at by the Israelis. An Italian man was with them who had been on a boat, seized by the Israelis, and tortured by them with cigarette burns on his arms. I was not with the group when they were there, but was concerned that they may have been looking for recruits!
Back to Ibrahim's. Tara and Ib had bought a carpet earlier that day, as Ib said it was the ultimate gift that a person could give. As I really wanted to express my thankfulness to his family, I had them pick one up that day, and Tara and I gave it to them. They seemed very pleased. Madeline picked up an orange tree for her family, which I thought was a lovely gift, too. According to her, the father kept rubbing the leaves throughout the evening.
Side note: Madeline and her student buddy went swimming with their host family in the sea. Women can swim, but they have to be fully clothed. She said they had a great time out past the waves and were there for an hour. The father had a life ring tied with a rope to his waist. Apparently, he has saved many a swimmer from drowning, and goes out prepared to do so.
That evening, Ib's family had a couple of health issues that they wanted to discuss, and wanted my opinion. It is very challenging to give advice when the health care seems sketchy. Ib's dad had gone to Cairo for health care as apparently, what he needed he could not receive in Gaza. As he is wealthy by Gazan standards, he had the personal funds to make the trip for more advice. But I was told that Palestinians are not treated well by the Egyptians. Ib's father has cardiac disease, diabetes that has not been controlled, and who knows what else. When I met him in Cairo, he showed me his foot with a sore on it, and he kept saying something like "high blood sugar". Fortunately, it did not look infected......... He had nothing done in Cairo. He and his wife have been waiting in Al Arish waiting for enough Palestinians to gather there to make it worth the Egyptians time to process them for entry back into Gaza. side note, because of his ill health, he was allowed an exception to leave Gaza in the first place.
The following morning was our departure day. We all gathered at the hotel to board the bus. Tara was staying. She has plans to get a job with UNRWA, and apply for graduate school in the UK along with Ibrahim, and to possibly eventually marry. It appeared to be very hard on her to see us leave, as she was very emotional. And I have to say, it was hard on me, too, to be leaving my niece in Gaza. Another student is staying as well, as she was offered a temporary job with another organization that was an exceptional opportunity. So I am glad that Tara has someone to connect with right away.
We drove to the border for entry back into Egypt. One of the Gazan organizers was to go with us who had an Egyptian passport, but, sadly, she was not allowed. It took several hours for our processing, but we were finally back in Egypt, a land of the more free than Gaza world. We drove back to Cairo, and this time I was able to enjoy the drive. How beautiful it was!!! The sand dunes mixed with palm trees. The Bedouin camps with the camels!! The Suez Canal! Wonderful drive.
Madeline, Joel, and I rechecked into the Hotel Pension Roma, and it felt like a 5 star hotel. We re-slathered with bug spray, ate some dinner, retired to bed where we listened to the loud-speaker of the call to prayer amplified into our bedroom. Ahhh......back in Cairo!!! Next day, London!!!!!
Joel will leave today. Madeline and I are looking forward to having Stephanie Graf and her girlfriend, Paige, come visit us for a few days. It will be fun showing them London, and mabey a side trip out of town. Following that, Madeline and I may be going to Barcelona for a few days, then back to Portland, Oregon, USA!!!!!!!! Yeah galore!!!!!
please excuse any typos and grammatical errors!!!!
Saturday, May 30, 2009
May 30, 2009
Quick update. Another long, grueling day in Gaza. Our hosts have done an excellent job showing us the many aspects of Gazan life, from politics, religion, school, bombings, fishing, being a woman, traditions and culture, you name it. Today was no exception. One of our activities was to take the bus up to the northeastern corner where they look into Israel and is frequently the target for Israeli retaliation. There is a hill that is usually planted with olive trees, but when they get of size, the Israelis send over tanks to plow them down. Today our activity was to help a farmer weed the newly planted orchard and help set up his irrigation system. It was quite profound to think that our efforts could soon be trampled upon by Israeli tanks!
While we were doing this activity, I was called upon to look at one of our guides who was not feeling well. She said that her right arm and hand was twitching out of control and she was crying. I tried to ask her several questions to help figure out what was going on, but she did not want to answer. Later I learned that she has had leukemia for 2 years. She was one of the girls who danced last night at the girls' party. She particularly caught my eye as she was incredibly striking and danced beautifully. I would be so interested to know what kind of medical treatment she has received.
Tomorrow we are going to 2 hospitals. Looking forward to it.
Some of the students are planning a side trip to Dahab on the Sinai penninsula to go scuba diving. Madeline and I are considering joining. Can't have too many adventures. Got to keep the blog alive!!!
later. hope to have more pictures.................cheers!!
While we were doing this activity, I was called upon to look at one of our guides who was not feeling well. She said that her right arm and hand was twitching out of control and she was crying. I tried to ask her several questions to help figure out what was going on, but she did not want to answer. Later I learned that she has had leukemia for 2 years. She was one of the girls who danced last night at the girls' party. She particularly caught my eye as she was incredibly striking and danced beautifully. I would be so interested to know what kind of medical treatment she has received.
Tomorrow we are going to 2 hospitals. Looking forward to it.
Some of the students are planning a side trip to Dahab on the Sinai penninsula to go scuba diving. Madeline and I are considering joining. Can't have too many adventures. Got to keep the blog alive!!!
later. hope to have more pictures.................cheers!!
ok, i may have a few minutes for a decent email. we are at one of the host family's homes for a bbq, just the girls, as this allows for them to put on shorts and take off their hijabs. what beautiful girls. we are presently at a palatial home, and they told me that many original gazans have homes such as this, large swimming pool, very elegant. so the girls are preparing a bbq, music playing, quite festive.
so exhausted i can hardly stand it. they have us so regimented it is draining. i get the impression they do not want us out of their sight. we get back to ibrahim's home very late, and he has a whole house full of family wanting to talk to us, relatives keep showing up. all very smiley, wanting to know our opinions, optimistic but nervous about obama having an affect on their situation.
this morning at 6am we went to the fishing marina to hear about the distress of the fishing industry. they can only go out 3 miles, need to go out 6 to get the fish, get shot at frequently. they are down to 5% of the boats going out. an american is here doing a documentary on this situation. we took the boat out in the water and were able to look back on gaza. and if one did not know any better, they would think it was a calm, quiet coastal town.
then they took us to a tunel where goods are brought in from egypt, only yards from it. because israel ontrols the goods that come into gaza based on a list that they control, many, many things are missing, and therefore, there are tunnels to bring them in. we were told that being a tunnel owner was very lucrative, as the goods are taxed. while we were looking at it, either we said the wrong thing, or there were actually israelis flying overhead, but they hurried us out of there with the later excuse!
so, after being in these harrowing locations, 5 us decided to take a taxi to a market. we were retrieved by a hamas bearing a rifle. the market was not scary, but the scene that the hamas caused was.
ibrahim and his family are very hospital and charming. ibrahim seems incredibly infatuated with tara, and it seems mutual from her angle. he is very attentive to her and me, wanting to be accommodating to any of our needs. as i's parents went to egypt for medical care, his brother and family went into the parents' room, and we went into their apartment upstairs. the accommoations are very comfortable. i just wish we had more time to be in them, as our schedules are so tight.
that is the story!!!!
the speakers, exposures, and everything is so impressive. went to unrwa today and a man john ging spoke to us and it was very informative, along with all of the speakers.
this situation is grim, to say the least.
but the gazans are truly impressive with their tenacity.
so exhausted i can hardly stand it. they have us so regimented it is draining. i get the impression they do not want us out of their sight. we get back to ibrahim's home very late, and he has a whole house full of family wanting to talk to us, relatives keep showing up. all very smiley, wanting to know our opinions, optimistic but nervous about obama having an affect on their situation.
this morning at 6am we went to the fishing marina to hear about the distress of the fishing industry. they can only go out 3 miles, need to go out 6 to get the fish, get shot at frequently. they are down to 5% of the boats going out. an american is here doing a documentary on this situation. we took the boat out in the water and were able to look back on gaza. and if one did not know any better, they would think it was a calm, quiet coastal town.
then they took us to a tunel where goods are brought in from egypt, only yards from it. because israel ontrols the goods that come into gaza based on a list that they control, many, many things are missing, and therefore, there are tunnels to bring them in. we were told that being a tunnel owner was very lucrative, as the goods are taxed. while we were looking at it, either we said the wrong thing, or there were actually israelis flying overhead, but they hurried us out of there with the later excuse!
so, after being in these harrowing locations, 5 us decided to take a taxi to a market. we were retrieved by a hamas bearing a rifle. the market was not scary, but the scene that the hamas caused was.
ibrahim and his family are very hospital and charming. ibrahim seems incredibly infatuated with tara, and it seems mutual from her angle. he is very attentive to her and me, wanting to be accommodating to any of our needs. as i's parents went to egypt for medical care, his brother and family went into the parents' room, and we went into their apartment upstairs. the accommoations are very comfortable. i just wish we had more time to be in them, as our schedules are so tight.
that is the story!!!!
the speakers, exposures, and everything is so impressive. went to unrwa today and a man john ging spoke to us and it was very informative, along with all of the speakers.
this situation is grim, to say the least.
but the gazans are truly impressive with their tenacity.
Friday, May 29, 2009
May 27, 2009
Update from my last blog, which I believe left us at the Rafah border crossing. As the border guards rarely pass people through and their knowledge of the process is limited, it took us a couple of hours to be processed. We first bought a stamp, an actual postage sized stamp that we thought we would see in our passport, but didn’t. Then we waited for the processing, waiting for our names to be called to receive our passports. Then bought a bus ticket to complete the journey to the border, while our bags were handled like airline luggage. We finally completed the processing and handling to realize we were in flipping Gaza!!!!
We were taken to a very nice hotel where our local group organizers met us and gave us information on our stay. Madeline had decided to stay with a host family other than with Ibrahim’s family, as she was ready for a break from me and also wanted the student experience. Let me interject. Tara finally was with Ibrahim! I have to say, they seemed enchanted with each other. Ibrahim gave a big round of hugs, and you could feel him shaking with excitement.
Today we met back up at 8am and listened to some presenters speak about Gazan life, culture, traditions….. It was all very interesting. Then we went to a school for the deaf that focused on skills developing in woodwork, pottery, and embroidery. From here, our next stops became quite intense.
We next went to the American School that had been bombed in the winter. It is my understanding, the Israelis occupied it, when they were done using it, they bombed it. It was completely destroyed. I was very surprised they took us down to it, as members of our group, myself included, had on sandals, and the area was piles and piles of shattered glass and debris.
Then we drove up to a neighborhood that had a lot of bombing and destruction, and it was arranged that we talk to some people and hear their stories. Mind you, this is not a tourist destination, and the people we talked to were the real thing, Gazans living in homes of rubble. But compared to the next group who we visited, they were living large. The next group was a tent city. People who had lived for months in a tent, a family to a tent regardless of size, and families tend to be large. One woman, cried while she told us that at night they would joke about the tent being a form of weight loss as they all sweated so much from the intense heat. The land was dirt and there was a hot, dry wind. The women wore the black clothing with hijabs. Can’t imagine.
Update from my last blog, which I believe left us at the Rafah border crossing. As the border guards rarely pass people through and their knowledge of the process is limited, it took us a couple of hours to be processed. We first bought a stamp, an actual postage sized stamp that we thought we would see in our passport, but didn’t. Then we waited for the processing, waiting for our names to be called to receive our passports. Then bought a bus ticket to complete the journey to the border, while our bags were handled like airline luggage. We finally completed the processing and handling to realize we were in flipping Gaza!!!!
We were taken to a very nice hotel where our local group organizers met us and gave us information on our stay. Madeline had decided to stay with a host family other than with Ibrahim’s family, as she was ready for a break from me and also wanted the student experience. Let me interject. Tara finally was with Ibrahim! I have to say, they seemed enchanted with each other. Ibrahim gave a big round of hugs, and you could feel him shaking with excitement.
Today we met back up at 8am and listened to some presenters speak about Gazan life, culture, traditions….. It was all very interesting. Then we went to a school for the deaf that focused on skills developing in woodwork, pottery, and embroidery. From here, our next stops became quite intense.
We next went to the American School that had been bombed in the winter. It is my understanding, the Israelis occupied it, when they were done using it, they bombed it. It was completely destroyed. I was very surprised they took us down to it, as members of our group, myself included, had on sandals, and the area was piles and piles of shattered glass and debris.
Then we drove up to a neighborhood that had a lot of bombing and destruction, and it was arranged that we talk to some people and hear their stories. Mind you, this is not a tourist destination, and the people we talked to were the real thing, Gazans living in homes of rubble. But compared to the next group who we visited, they were living large. The next group was a tent city. People who had lived for months in a tent, a family to a tent regardless of size, and families tend to be large. One woman, cried while she told us that at night they would joke about the tent being a form of weight loss as they all sweated so much from the intense heat. The land was dirt and there was a hot, dry wind. The women wore the black clothing with hijabs. Can’t imagine.
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Update!!
May 26, 2009
Update on the journey to Gaza. I am not sure where I left of on my blogging. But a quick update. We left Cairo with the student delegation May 25, at 3 a.m. We had a many hour drive across the Sinai Peninsula, taking a bridge that crossed the Suez Canal. Unfortunately, due to darkness and significant fatigue, I was not able to appreciate the scenery the way I would have liked. One of the peoples of this area is the Bedouins, who we would see out across the dessert on their camels. Many of them live in dwellings made out of palm tree fronds. It is my understanding that this area is more conservative than Cairo, and more of the women were wearing the complete black clothing with the veils.
We drove all the way to the Rafah border to try to cross into Gaza. Along the way, we picked up a police escort, and went through 6 checkpoints. We sere successful getting to the border, but were unable to pass through. We met up with a Canadian group that had been there for 3 days. We stayed at the border for many hours before returning to Al Arish to spend the night.
The following morning we left again, this time in tow with the Canadian group, and another American group who had gotten to Al Arish the previous day. Side note, the two American groups have done such an impressive working with American organizations to help facilitate our entry, and due to their coordination, it looks like we will be entering Gaza eventually, but not without obstacles, as that morning we were turned away at the first check point. We went back to the hotel, leaders made more phone calls, and we were assured we were on our way!!
Again, off we went. Things were going very smoothly until it was realized we had a Palestinian in our group whose passport was not in order. Sadly, unfortunately, she was left at the border, and may try to reenter later this week with the Codepink group.
Now, at this moment in time, we are waiting for paperwork/passport control to be finalized to actually allow us into Gaza!!! Amazing!!
Update on the journey to Gaza. I am not sure where I left of on my blogging. But a quick update. We left Cairo with the student delegation May 25, at 3 a.m. We had a many hour drive across the Sinai Peninsula, taking a bridge that crossed the Suez Canal. Unfortunately, due to darkness and significant fatigue, I was not able to appreciate the scenery the way I would have liked. One of the peoples of this area is the Bedouins, who we would see out across the dessert on their camels. Many of them live in dwellings made out of palm tree fronds. It is my understanding that this area is more conservative than Cairo, and more of the women were wearing the complete black clothing with the veils.
We drove all the way to the Rafah border to try to cross into Gaza. Along the way, we picked up a police escort, and went through 6 checkpoints. We sere successful getting to the border, but were unable to pass through. We met up with a Canadian group that had been there for 3 days. We stayed at the border for many hours before returning to Al Arish to spend the night.
The following morning we left again, this time in tow with the Canadian group, and another American group who had gotten to Al Arish the previous day. Side note, the two American groups have done such an impressive working with American organizations to help facilitate our entry, and due to their coordination, it looks like we will be entering Gaza eventually, but not without obstacles, as that morning we were turned away at the first check point. We went back to the hotel, leaders made more phone calls, and we were assured we were on our way!!
Again, off we went. Things were going very smoothly until it was realized we had a Palestinian in our group whose passport was not in order. Sadly, unfortunately, she was left at the border, and may try to reenter later this week with the Codepink group.
Now, at this moment in time, we are waiting for paperwork/passport control to be finalized to actually allow us into Gaza!!! Amazing!!
Sunday, May 24, 2009
Update: Yesterday we went to the pyramids. We felt pretty smug because we had prearranged an air conditioned taxi. He showed up at 730am with a freshly bashed passenger door that he had just done that morning. I was thankful that it happened when we were not in it! The pyramids were everything I expected and more. I believe the highlight for me, though, was the ride in and out of Cairo. It always amazes me how differently people live around the world, and this was no exception.
One surprise for me, however, were the carpet schools. On our drive we kept seeing buildings stating that they were carpet schools, and a couple of them had tour buses in front of them. We had our driver stop at one. Instantly we were escorted by a guide who took us to the back of the building where children were tying carpets. He told us about the high level of skill that was required to make the beautiful carpets. They were made from different materials, silk, cotton, camel hair, wool. The most intricate were the silk. The workers used a sheet of paper for the pattern, in centimeter squares for their gauge, and depending on the material, 36-81 knots per square. The students at this school were between the ages of 6-16, and they had to be bright children in order to learn how to make the carpets. We were told they went to school for 4 hours, and carpet school for 4. When they turned 16 they were let go, because their hands were too large for the intricate work.
Then we were taken into a show room where carpets were laid out for us to examine. They were beautiful. The smallest one, about 2 ft square was $400.00. We were served coffee, tea, and cola while we were to be shopping for a carpet. At this point we were a little uncomfortable, as we had no intention on buying a carpet, but were assured that it was fine to just enjoy the beverages and leave!! We were out of there!!!
Joel, our delightful traveling companion, is feeling somewhat under the weather today with mild stomach issues. Hopefully he will rally!!!!
The plan is to leave early in the morning at 3am on the bus for the students' delegation!! We are optimistic we will get in, as we are hearing other groups have!! Stay tuned!!
One surprise for me, however, were the carpet schools. On our drive we kept seeing buildings stating that they were carpet schools, and a couple of them had tour buses in front of them. We had our driver stop at one. Instantly we were escorted by a guide who took us to the back of the building where children were tying carpets. He told us about the high level of skill that was required to make the beautiful carpets. They were made from different materials, silk, cotton, camel hair, wool. The most intricate were the silk. The workers used a sheet of paper for the pattern, in centimeter squares for their gauge, and depending on the material, 36-81 knots per square. The students at this school were between the ages of 6-16, and they had to be bright children in order to learn how to make the carpets. We were told they went to school for 4 hours, and carpet school for 4. When they turned 16 they were let go, because their hands were too large for the intricate work.
Then we were taken into a show room where carpets were laid out for us to examine. They were beautiful. The smallest one, about 2 ft square was $400.00. We were served coffee, tea, and cola while we were to be shopping for a carpet. At this point we were a little uncomfortable, as we had no intention on buying a carpet, but were assured that it was fine to just enjoy the beverages and leave!! We were out of there!!!
Joel, our delightful traveling companion, is feeling somewhat under the weather today with mild stomach issues. Hopefully he will rally!!!!
The plan is to leave early in the morning at 3am on the bus for the students' delegation!! We are optimistic we will get in, as we are hearing other groups have!! Stay tuned!!
Friday, May 22, 2009
The end of an exhausting day!!! We shopped a fair while this afternoon. I bought a table and Madeline bought a hooka, so we have some things of significant size to deal with. Oh well!!!
Tara met with Ibrahim's parents this evening. They seemed very pleasant and pleased to meet her. The father had some paperwork regarding his health that I looked at. He will be in the hospital tomorrow evening and we may go see him. I would be interested to visit another hospital. We walked over to a park to visit, and it was dark by that time. A man was closing down his roasted corn stand, so brought all of us an ear. After the visit, the four of us went out for dinner.
We head out for the pyramids tomorrow, with the cab picking us up at 730am. We are looking forward to the day; I am looking forward to the air-conditioned taxi!!!
Cheers!!!!
Tara met with Ibrahim's parents this evening. They seemed very pleasant and pleased to meet her. The father had some paperwork regarding his health that I looked at. He will be in the hospital tomorrow evening and we may go see him. I would be interested to visit another hospital. We walked over to a park to visit, and it was dark by that time. A man was closing down his roasted corn stand, so brought all of us an ear. After the visit, the four of us went out for dinner.
We head out for the pyramids tomorrow, with the cab picking us up at 730am. We are looking forward to the day; I am looking forward to the air-conditioned taxi!!!
Cheers!!!!
Madeline and I are sitting on a deck of our hotel having a cup of hot tea. We are already quite hot, but it is the thing to do. We just had a full day of going to the Citadel which was very impressive, then on to the oldest market. Both were completely interesting. While at the Citadel, we could see two sets of pyramids. It was also time for prayer, and we could hear from the city below the sounds of the prayers being called. It was quite surreal for me. At the market trinkets were bought by all. I may be kicking myself, but I bought a brass table with a wooden stand. We had lunch at an adventurous cafe, of which I will eventually include a picture.
I am going up to the room in a moment to prepare for a very special evening in Tara's life, as she is going to be meeting Ibrahim's parents for the first time. It is such a privilege for me to participate in this time. I am very thankful to be here with her. She is such a beautiful young woman, so thoughtful and intelligent Until later..........
Greetings!! Today we are going to do more sights of Cairo, Old Cairo, an old Mosque, the University among other things I am sure it will be an interesting day. Tomorrow we are planning on going to the pyramids. We will be making that trip with many warnings that we have received around the breakfast tables. One coupe felt so hassled by the tricks of the taxi drivers, tourist handlers, games and tricks, that they felt their day was quite negatively impacted. Nothing better than some good tips!!
We talked to a woman who went into Gaza in March with the Codepink group. She has arranged a group of her own that is connected with Codepink that is leaving a day after us. Her description of Gaza is quite bleak.
Yesterday I spent the morning with my niece, Tara, while she shopped for a cell phone. In the pursuit of doing so, we found ourselves in a market and on various side streets. The atmosphere was chaotic and an assault to the senses. Tara was impressively successful purchasing a phone, and later, finding a card to add minutes. After the phone, we hooked back up with Madeline and Joel, and went back to the market with shopping interests. Madeline and I each bought a pair of shoes from a skilled 10 year old shop tender who drove a hard bargain. Joel bought a pair of men capris. Then we ate some Egyptian sandwiches from a street vendor and finished it up going to a tea shop. It was all quite fun.
Then we were off to the British Museum. We decided to be self reliant and chose to take the Metro. After crossing streets (which can be incredibly harrowing, best technique is to find another person crossing, and then tail gate them, but a better tip that we learned at breakfast is to tail a woman carrying a child, or someone with a cane!!!) taking staircases that did not lead to the Metro, and spinning our wheels, we asked some girls where it was, and they took us to the station and bought our tickets for us!!! Well, at least our self sufficiency will be improved for our next journey! We were off to the Egyptian Museum.
Then we walked to the Nile river which was another completely different environment. There are a lot of very decorated boats that take tourists out for an hour boat trip. It looked like they all had very loud music and some people were dancing. We had a nice dinner based on a recommendation, then called it a day!!!
We talked to a woman who went into Gaza in March with the Codepink group. She has arranged a group of her own that is connected with Codepink that is leaving a day after us. Her description of Gaza is quite bleak.
Yesterday I spent the morning with my niece, Tara, while she shopped for a cell phone. In the pursuit of doing so, we found ourselves in a market and on various side streets. The atmosphere was chaotic and an assault to the senses. Tara was impressively successful purchasing a phone, and later, finding a card to add minutes. After the phone, we hooked back up with Madeline and Joel, and went back to the market with shopping interests. Madeline and I each bought a pair of shoes from a skilled 10 year old shop tender who drove a hard bargain. Joel bought a pair of men capris. Then we ate some Egyptian sandwiches from a street vendor and finished it up going to a tea shop. It was all quite fun.
Then we were off to the British Museum. We decided to be self reliant and chose to take the Metro. After crossing streets (which can be incredibly harrowing, best technique is to find another person crossing, and then tail gate them, but a better tip that we learned at breakfast is to tail a woman carrying a child, or someone with a cane!!!) taking staircases that did not lead to the Metro, and spinning our wheels, we asked some girls where it was, and they took us to the station and bought our tickets for us!!! Well, at least our self sufficiency will be improved for our next journey! We were off to the Egyptian Museum.
Then we walked to the Nile river which was another completely different environment. There are a lot of very decorated boats that take tourists out for an hour boat trip. It looked like they all had very loud music and some people were dancing. We had a nice dinner based on a recommendation, then called it a day!!!
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
May 20, 2009, We are here in Cairo!!!!
Madeline and I went to Heathrow and met up with my niece, Tara DeLancey. She was sitting with another student from Colorado University, Joel. Joel had heard one of the Codepink speakers do a presentation on campus, and it inspired him to join the student delegation that is attempting to go into Gaza this week.
When we got into Egypt, before we cleared immigration all of the passengers had their temperature taken. I do not know if this is routinely done, or if it is in response to the swine flu concerns. I would be interested to know, and will blog it if I find out. I have posted a picture of Madeline having hers done.
We then went out for either a taxi ride or a bus to our hotel. According to the travel books, it is hard to trust the vendors at the airport. They supposedly do a bait and switch type deal where they will tell you there is no bus service, or tell you that your hotel is closed.....all of this sort of thing. We ended up getting a good price into Cairo for 12 dollars, and that was for 4 with our bags, as Joel came with us. I am not sure how far the ride was, but I do know that the driving was a little scary for me. I did not see a lot of the scenery on the way in, as I had to close my eyes a lot of the time to keep my nerves calm. When we got to our hotel, there was an interesting looking man sitting outside of the elevator, and I will be attaching a picture of him. Joel had been planning on staying at a hostel, but as it was so late, he ended up staying with us. Our room accommodates 4 very well, as it has two rooms with two beds each. It will be fine with me if he stays with us the whole time. I told him that I liked a tidy room, and he said the same. So after he Febreezed his pants and sanitized his hands, we settled into bed. I like this roommate a lot!!
As I a blogging, I hear a minarette calling out. I am also starting to do a lot of scratching, and I am afraid it is some type of bug eating me. I had read about mosquitoes, but I do not hear their buzzing. hmmmm.................anyway.
The room comes with breakfast that is served until 11am, yeah for a sleep in!!
Stay posted. Tomorrow is a new day, new adventures~~~~~~
When we got into Egypt, before we cleared immigration all of the passengers had their temperature taken. I do not know if this is routinely done, or if it is in response to the swine flu concerns. I would be interested to know, and will blog it if I find out. I have posted a picture of Madeline having hers done.
We then went out for either a taxi ride or a bus to our hotel. According to the travel books, it is hard to trust the vendors at the airport. They supposedly do a bait and switch type deal where they will tell you there is no bus service, or tell you that your hotel is closed.....all of this sort of thing. We ended up getting a good price into Cairo for 12 dollars, and that was for 4 with our bags, as Joel came with us. I am not sure how far the ride was, but I do know that the driving was a little scary for me. I did not see a lot of the scenery on the way in, as I had to close my eyes a lot of the time to keep my nerves calm. When we got to our hotel, there was an interesting looking man sitting outside of the elevator, and I will be attaching a picture of him. Joel had been planning on staying at a hostel, but as it was so late, he ended up staying with us. Our room accommodates 4 very well, as it has two rooms with two beds each. It will be fine with me if he stays with us the whole time. I told him that I liked a tidy room, and he said the same. So after he Febreezed his pants and sanitized his hands, we settled into bed. I like this roommate a lot!!
As I a blogging, I hear a minarette calling out. I am also starting to do a lot of scratching, and I am afraid it is some type of bug eating me. I had read about mosquitoes, but I do not hear their buzzing. hmmmm.................anyway.
The room comes with breakfast that is served until 11am, yeah for a sleep in!!
Stay posted. Tomorrow is a new day, new adventures~~~~~~
May 20, 2009
Greetings!!!! Madeline flew into Heathrow yesterday, and today we head back out together to meet my niece, Tara, there to fly to Cairo. Our goal is to enter Gaza, as Tara has been online dating a man there for two years. Wish us luck!!!
Friday, May 15, 2009
May 15, 2009.
Greetings to all!!!! I cannot believe it is May 15. I have been so busy with work and getting out and around. All has been going fine. I still marvel at how different everything is in the hospital world, in regards to my particular ward. We had a Band 5 nursing day yesterday, and I was able to learn more about the nursing band system. We were given many sheet handout that addresses how nurses progress up the layers of bands. I am going to take time to look at it and see if I can make sense out of it.
While my nursing experience is winding down, next week I am going to try to get into Gaza with my daughter, Madeline, and niece, Tara. My niece has just graduated from the Colorado University with a degree in linguistics. She speaks Arabic and is now Muslim. She has been communicating with a man in Gaza for 2 years, and is now ready to go meet him. It is not easy to get into Gaza, you have to apply for permission to enter, and it is my understanding that most people are denied. Therefore, we are signed up with two delegations for the attempt to enter, one a students' delegation, and the other, Codepink. It is my understanding that Codepink may have a better chance of getting in, as they are more recognized worldwide as a peace keeping activists group, formed by women. It is not totally clear to me exactly how this will unfold. I am hearing snippets about a tent at the border? not sure about that, hmm.....
Stay tuned.
Thank you to those who have been following, as I know I have have quite a dry spell. I will be honest, my experiences at the hospital have been hard to blog about. In the meanwhile, I have been communicating to my Portland coworkers via email, and that has been a more comfortable way to share my experiences. Basically, I have found that the differences between working in a London neurology hospital and a Portland, Oregon, hospital to be vastly different.
So my next adventure that my blog will be covering will be my trip to Gaza, or at least the attempt. My plan is to chronicle it well. Please stay tuned. Donna
While my nursing experience is winding down, next week I am going to try to get into Gaza with my daughter, Madeline, and niece, Tara. My niece has just graduated from the Colorado University with a degree in linguistics. She speaks Arabic and is now Muslim. She has been communicating with a man in Gaza for 2 years, and is now ready to go meet him. It is not easy to get into Gaza, you have to apply for permission to enter, and it is my understanding that most people are denied. Therefore, we are signed up with two delegations for the attempt to enter, one a students' delegation, and the other, Codepink. It is my understanding that Codepink may have a better chance of getting in, as they are more recognized worldwide as a peace keeping activists group, formed by women. It is not totally clear to me exactly how this will unfold. I am hearing snippets about a tent at the border? not sure about that, hmm.....
Stay tuned.
Thank you to those who have been following, as I know I have have quite a dry spell. I will be honest, my experiences at the hospital have been hard to blog about. In the meanwhile, I have been communicating to my Portland coworkers via email, and that has been a more comfortable way to share my experiences. Basically, I have found that the differences between working in a London neurology hospital and a Portland, Oregon, hospital to be vastly different.
So my next adventure that my blog will be covering will be my trip to Gaza, or at least the attempt. My plan is to chronicle it well. Please stay tuned. Donna
Friday, April 24, 2009
April 25, 2009
Well, my enthusiasm for passing the IV skills assessment has vanished. I got Bobbi to send an email stating that I am qualified to administer IV medication, but the manager said as far as he knew, it could have been sent by my best friend. He is right, it could have been.
Cheers!
Cheers!
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
April 21, 2009
Greetings from London!!
I am coming upon the completion of my fourth month of my London nursing experience. While it seems an eternity in many ways, it is actually flying by. One current aspect that I am thoroughly enjoying, is the fact that the weather has changed and spring is apparent everywhere. I can see how Londoners would be frustrated with tourists clogging the sidewalks. There are large groups everywhere, and they will go right up to the edge of the sidewalk and wait for the lights to turn green. While this is actually a very safe idea, people who work and live in the city don't wait for the light to turn, they cross based on whether or not there are cars. With these large groups with their toes on the edge of the sidewalk, no one can cut through them to cross. Grrrr.......
Work is going well overall. As I found that passing the oral medication requirement was quite a feat of jumping through hoops, I had pretty much decided to not even try the iv administration process. It involves about 75 pages of a workbook, an evaluator going through it (that would have probably been about 3 times), then a hands-on assessment. Then I was talking to the nursing manager, and he said if I got an email from Providence stating that I was US qualified, that would exempt the 75 pages!! He went on to say that they liked hiring nurses from Australia as they came all prepared to work (as well as US nurses, but they don't have nurses coming over from the states typically), unlike UK nurses and other countries. So I jumped back in with enthusiasm, and did several iv passes last night. It requires gloving and gowning up, mixing your medications, then giving. Most antibiotics are made in 10-20 mls of sterile water, then given in 3-5 minutes.
But I have pretty much settled in. I now have a watch fob (a watch that you wear on your chest, hangs upside down so that you can see it when you glance at your chest), and I really like it. I am now comfortable doing "handover", even though I still get amused by it. I am currently working nights, and I am trying to example that it is not necessary to wake everyone up at 645am if they are sleeping soundly, by just talking quietly!! This little old lady had such a hard time getting to sleep last night in her halo, she had been throwing up and had a challenge getting comfortable, that it just did not seem necessary to end the sleep that she had finally found!
Back to handover. I believe I described the process earlier, but a quick review. We walk around as a group, the handing over nurse and the next crew of nurses and assistants, so we are usually about 4-5 people. We go from foot of the bed to bed, picking up the nursing chart and going through sheet to sheet. It covers obs (observations/vital signs), bowels open (bm's), GCS (glasgow coma scale) for almost everyone, regardless of surgery, and often times for the length of their stay (even though it has been a month), pupils, limb strength, nausea, risk of dvt, risk of chest infection, risk of slips, trips, falls, fluid charts, food charts, risk of foley catheter blockage, and any other nursing plan that they have found appropriate. We remind people that they need to be drinking enough or we will need to start an iv. We remind people that they need to have their bowels open. We then pick up the medication sheet/sheets, and we all observe them looking for medications that may have been missed. We do all of this at 745-815am. We can be loud. I can be so easily entertained!
I talked to the nurse manager last night about handover, sharing with him our style is to report by exception. His comment was that report teaches nurses how to think like nurses, that it was a continuation of their education (which is why they like Aussie nurses, as they are completely educated). That he wants his band 5 nurses going through every detail, and therefore, every one does also.
This is also true with medication passing and IV administration. A new nurse does not have those skills and gets that training on the job, and the process can be very lengthy. One of the nurses who I talked to has been there 8 years and has never completed it. It is known amongst the staff who is a grade 5 nurse and on up, and it is determined which nurse can do the more complicated patients, trachs, IVD's (internal ventricular device), IV medications. Therefore, a grade 5 nurse can have less complicated patients, while the higher grade nurses not only do their patients, but may be doing iv medications for the lower grade nurses. Interesting system.
So anyway, I am settling in. I am getting used to the 12.5 hour shifts. I am getting more used to the many, many different accents of my co-workers (African, Philippine, Japanese, Indian, Australian, eastern European.......) I am getting used to living in a dorm-like room and climbing up to the equivalent of 5 floors as the lift is broken, and it will take 3 months to fix it (I am on the fourth floor, the but floors start at zero). I am settling in.
My best friend is the fire educator for the NHS trust. He is from east London, and is completely entertaining with his local stories. He is an expert of Jack the Ripper, and took me, Madeline (my daughter), and her girlfriend from college, on a Jack the Ripper tour. I met him my first day of induction, where he stormed into the room beginning his talk by talking about his ex-wives (he exaggerated, as he only has one ex-wife). But I sat up and paid attention to him, especially as he had followed the cultural sensitivity educator, who had described Americans as being loud and wanting to talk about their divorces. I completely enjoy having coffee with him, as his stories are so colorful and his accent fun to listen to. Dow and I took the train out to his home and went out to dinner with he and his wife. He has also invited us to take a drive and see the blooming of the blue bells in a couple of weeks. He has become an unexpected, delightful surprise.
I have rambled. Thank you if you made it to this point.
Kathy, you asked about skin care issues. Somewhat similar to ours. Air beds are also used when available. Lots of similar dressings. Lots of charting.
I miss everyone like crazy!!!!!!!!!!!!! xxoodb
I am coming upon the completion of my fourth month of my London nursing experience. While it seems an eternity in many ways, it is actually flying by. One current aspect that I am thoroughly enjoying, is the fact that the weather has changed and spring is apparent everywhere. I can see how Londoners would be frustrated with tourists clogging the sidewalks. There are large groups everywhere, and they will go right up to the edge of the sidewalk and wait for the lights to turn green. While this is actually a very safe idea, people who work and live in the city don't wait for the light to turn, they cross based on whether or not there are cars. With these large groups with their toes on the edge of the sidewalk, no one can cut through them to cross. Grrrr.......
Work is going well overall. As I found that passing the oral medication requirement was quite a feat of jumping through hoops, I had pretty much decided to not even try the iv administration process. It involves about 75 pages of a workbook, an evaluator going through it (that would have probably been about 3 times), then a hands-on assessment. Then I was talking to the nursing manager, and he said if I got an email from Providence stating that I was US qualified, that would exempt the 75 pages!! He went on to say that they liked hiring nurses from Australia as they came all prepared to work (as well as US nurses, but they don't have nurses coming over from the states typically), unlike UK nurses and other countries. So I jumped back in with enthusiasm, and did several iv passes last night. It requires gloving and gowning up, mixing your medications, then giving. Most antibiotics are made in 10-20 mls of sterile water, then given in 3-5 minutes.
But I have pretty much settled in. I now have a watch fob (a watch that you wear on your chest, hangs upside down so that you can see it when you glance at your chest), and I really like it. I am now comfortable doing "handover", even though I still get amused by it. I am currently working nights, and I am trying to example that it is not necessary to wake everyone up at 645am if they are sleeping soundly, by just talking quietly!! This little old lady had such a hard time getting to sleep last night in her halo, she had been throwing up and had a challenge getting comfortable, that it just did not seem necessary to end the sleep that she had finally found!
Back to handover. I believe I described the process earlier, but a quick review. We walk around as a group, the handing over nurse and the next crew of nurses and assistants, so we are usually about 4-5 people. We go from foot of the bed to bed, picking up the nursing chart and going through sheet to sheet. It covers obs (observations/vital signs), bowels open (bm's), GCS (glasgow coma scale) for almost everyone, regardless of surgery, and often times for the length of their stay (even though it has been a month), pupils, limb strength, nausea, risk of dvt, risk of chest infection, risk of slips, trips, falls, fluid charts, food charts, risk of foley catheter blockage, and any other nursing plan that they have found appropriate. We remind people that they need to be drinking enough or we will need to start an iv. We remind people that they need to have their bowels open. We then pick up the medication sheet/sheets, and we all observe them looking for medications that may have been missed. We do all of this at 745-815am. We can be loud. I can be so easily entertained!
I talked to the nurse manager last night about handover, sharing with him our style is to report by exception. His comment was that report teaches nurses how to think like nurses, that it was a continuation of their education (which is why they like Aussie nurses, as they are completely educated). That he wants his band 5 nurses going through every detail, and therefore, every one does also.
This is also true with medication passing and IV administration. A new nurse does not have those skills and gets that training on the job, and the process can be very lengthy. One of the nurses who I talked to has been there 8 years and has never completed it. It is known amongst the staff who is a grade 5 nurse and on up, and it is determined which nurse can do the more complicated patients, trachs, IVD's (internal ventricular device), IV medications. Therefore, a grade 5 nurse can have less complicated patients, while the higher grade nurses not only do their patients, but may be doing iv medications for the lower grade nurses. Interesting system.
So anyway, I am settling in. I am getting used to the 12.5 hour shifts. I am getting more used to the many, many different accents of my co-workers (African, Philippine, Japanese, Indian, Australian, eastern European.......) I am getting used to living in a dorm-like room and climbing up to the equivalent of 5 floors as the lift is broken, and it will take 3 months to fix it (I am on the fourth floor, the but floors start at zero). I am settling in.
My best friend is the fire educator for the NHS trust. He is from east London, and is completely entertaining with his local stories. He is an expert of Jack the Ripper, and took me, Madeline (my daughter), and her girlfriend from college, on a Jack the Ripper tour. I met him my first day of induction, where he stormed into the room beginning his talk by talking about his ex-wives (he exaggerated, as he only has one ex-wife). But I sat up and paid attention to him, especially as he had followed the cultural sensitivity educator, who had described Americans as being loud and wanting to talk about their divorces. I completely enjoy having coffee with him, as his stories are so colorful and his accent fun to listen to. Dow and I took the train out to his home and went out to dinner with he and his wife. He has also invited us to take a drive and see the blooming of the blue bells in a couple of weeks. He has become an unexpected, delightful surprise.
I have rambled. Thank you if you made it to this point.
Kathy, you asked about skin care issues. Somewhat similar to ours. Air beds are also used when available. Lots of similar dressings. Lots of charting.
I miss everyone like crazy!!!!!!!!!!!!! xxoodb
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
April 8, 2009!!!
Greetings to All!!!!
Please excuse the delay in posting. I find myself thinking constantly about what I want to say about my experiences, and I am always challenged with how to share and express myself about what I am doing and seeing. It is all so profound. I love the opportunity of being able to meet so many people of so many different cultures through my job, both as patients and coworkers. As I have said earlier, Britain has recruited nurses from many other countries, including India, Philippines, and Africa. They come over as nurses in their home country, then spend approximately six months in England doing an overseas nursing program, which includes a lengthy work/study program in a nursing home-like setting. Then they continue to build on their skills in the hospital setting, adding medication and iv skills to their studies.
Coming over as an American nurse, I did not have to do the six month program, but rather a 20-day program that I was able to do here in Portland. But I was stripped of my skills and had to do the study programs including medications and iv training, the later I have still not done.
I am learning more differences all the time. The other day I had a patient who I suggested could use a muscle relaxer, and was talking to the pharmacist about it. He thought I was suggesting a low dose of diazepam, as he was not familiar with a category of medications known as muscle relaxers.
Please enjoy the attached pictures, which include some equipment used by the physical therapists to help people work on standing. They also use a tilt table, basically a table that people are strapped onto, they the table tilts to put them in standing position!!
Also, a picture of the medication cart with its contents. It is so nice having medications available for distribution. I also included a picture of one of the bays of patient beds, and you can see how good it is for patients to be able to visit with each other.
Also included are some pictures of Madeline and her girlfriend from college, Katee, who came over for spring break. If anyone is wanting to come over, you better do it soon, as my time is winding down. I have to say, I am so looking forward to returning to Providence Portland and being with my coworkers!!! I miss everyone so much!!
Enjoy!!!!
Please excuse the delay in posting. I find myself thinking constantly about what I want to say about my experiences, and I am always challenged with how to share and express myself about what I am doing and seeing. It is all so profound. I love the opportunity of being able to meet so many people of so many different cultures through my job, both as patients and coworkers. As I have said earlier, Britain has recruited nurses from many other countries, including India, Philippines, and Africa. They come over as nurses in their home country, then spend approximately six months in England doing an overseas nursing program, which includes a lengthy work/study program in a nursing home-like setting. Then they continue to build on their skills in the hospital setting, adding medication and iv skills to their studies.
Coming over as an American nurse, I did not have to do the six month program, but rather a 20-day program that I was able to do here in Portland. But I was stripped of my skills and had to do the study programs including medications and iv training, the later I have still not done.
I am learning more differences all the time. The other day I had a patient who I suggested could use a muscle relaxer, and was talking to the pharmacist about it. He thought I was suggesting a low dose of diazepam, as he was not familiar with a category of medications known as muscle relaxers.
Please enjoy the attached pictures, which include some equipment used by the physical therapists to help people work on standing. They also use a tilt table, basically a table that people are strapped onto, they the table tilts to put them in standing position!!
Also, a picture of the medication cart with its contents. It is so nice having medications available for distribution. I also included a picture of one of the bays of patient beds, and you can see how good it is for patients to be able to visit with each other.
Also included are some pictures of Madeline and her girlfriend from college, Katee, who came over for spring break. If anyone is wanting to come over, you better do it soon, as my time is winding down. I have to say, I am so looking forward to returning to Providence Portland and being with my coworkers!!! I miss everyone so much!!
Enjoy!!!!
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
March 17, 2009
Apologies to all for delay in posting. I went to the U.S. for two weeks, and then came back to London with my daughter Madeline. Later, we were joined by one of her college friends, and the two of them spent their spring break with me in my little room. It was so much fun having them here, and they were constantly busy doing the sights of London. A high light for me was seeing the musical Oliver at the Drury Lane Theater. Even though we had the last row in the house, on the third level, it was quite a treat to see it. Afterwards, we waited outside the cast door, and the headliner of the play came out and signed our tickets, Rowan Atkinson, otherwise known as Mr. Bean.
Going home was well needed. I had so many thoughts and concerns in my head, that to be able to talk about some of it with my Providence co-workers was very therapeutic. I have come up with some strategies on how to maximize this nursing experience, to realize that medical practices can be very different, and that my part is to be an observer and appreciate the differences.
One of my first surprises was the capacity in which new nurses perform. I began the position with 14 shifts of supernumerary, or rather, working with a preceptor. My expectation was that upon completion, I would be a floor nurse working as I would at home. I soon realized that was not the case, that I could not pass medications until I had completed a lengthy work book and then passed a skills test. Apparently, this usually takes 4-5 months, and in the meanwhile, I could not pass medications without a nurse observing me in the process.
Let me explain the medication passing process:
The medications are hand written on a three-fold sheet. The handwriting can be a challenge in itself. Some patients have as many as 3-4 sheets.
The medications are kept in a trolley that is locked with a skeleton key. The trolley has no overhead lighting, so when it is nap time from 12pm-1pm, or in the evening, it can be very difficult to see the many boxes of medication. Then comes the job of finding the boxes of medications that you need. It is required that the expiration date be read every time you dispense that med, and that can be very difficult with the decreased lighting, as they are microscopically stamped on the cards. When I realized that it could take 4-5 months before I could do this process on my own, I decided to become proactive, get the workbook done, redone, and redone, get scheduled skills test and get it done!!!
So I can now pass oral medication!!!! Whew!!! To be able to give IV medication involves the same process. I have decided that I am content relying on a band 6 nurse doing my work, as I am especially uncomfortable giving phenytoin in a peripheral line, as they do not use phosphenytoin.
To be able to take these skill tests requires that a clinical nurse facilitator assess you, and it can take a while before they are available to schedule you in.
When I was home talking to my nurse friends, it was so wonderful to be around my peer group who have the same nursing process skills. Example: we have the concern of infection with foley catheters. The concern here is having them blocked, or rather, occluded, and the care plan is for exactly that. Another example: I had a patient who they were charting as having pressure ulcers on the top of her feet. Anyway.
I believe my experience from here forward is going to be much more enjoyable, as my perspective has changed.
Enjoy a few pictures of my house guests!!
Monday, February 23, 2009
January 23, I am in Boston!!
Yeah, I made it to Boston. I had gone down to Argos on New Oxford, a store where you go in and look up your items in a catalog, enter the item number in a machine to see if it is on stock, pay for it, then have it brought out to you. So basically, you do not see the item until after paid for. To return the item, it has to be unused and in the original packaging. So anyway, I was needing a piece of luggage as the one I came with was broken. Long story short, the phrase you get what you paid for was resonating in my head the following day when I rolled my new piece of luggage to the Russell Square tube station as one of the wheels fell apart!! Basically, I drug that piece of luggage from London to Boston!! anyway.......
It is so good to be here. I checked into the Bulfinch Hotel here in Boston, and Kate and Leslie joined me. We ordered out pizza, pasta, supplied our own wine, and watched the academies. I did not make it to the end, though, and it is now 6am and I found out the final results online. I loved the movie, Slumdog. In my opinion, this years movies were all quite good.
I am going to Portland tomorrow, and I so look forward to seeing everyone!! Cheers!!
It is so good to be here. I checked into the Bulfinch Hotel here in Boston, and Kate and Leslie joined me. We ordered out pizza, pasta, supplied our own wine, and watched the academies. I did not make it to the end, though, and it is now 6am and I found out the final results online. I loved the movie, Slumdog. In my opinion, this years movies were all quite good.
I am going to Portland tomorrow, and I so look forward to seeing everyone!! Cheers!!
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Saturday, February 21, 2009
February 21, 2009
Yeah!!! Tomorrow I am flying to Boston and will stop over and watch the Oscars with Kate and Leslie!!!! Yeah!!!! Dow will come in on Monday, and we will both fly back to Portland on Tuesday!! Yeah!!
I just worked three long days on the unit. After doing a large work book first, I had a training moment on the PCA system, then I will have a test. One of the charge nurses just failed the test. Ok. PCAs are not through an IV site, but rather, through the subcutaneous route that I referred to earlier, usually in the upper arm.
Patients who are going for procedures such as a ct or xray are sent down in their bed with a porter and a nurse, along with an emergency bag with an ambu bag in it. When patients go to surgery, the nurse goes down with them and into the pre-surgical area. Then when they are ready to leave recovery, the nurse goes back down with the emergency bag, gets report from the recovery nurse, and brings them back up on the floor with the porter.
One clarification about the MRSA situation. Patients are nasally swabbed on admit and a week later in their nose. The patients who were negative initially, then positive later had it in their nose. Not in wounds.
I have seen several frontal/temporal lobectomies.
The weather in London today was fantastic. The sidewalks were crammed with people on the shopping streets. I am starting to look forward to more nice days.
I will see a lot of you in Portland. Cheers until then.
p.s. the elevator in my dorm will be out of order for 14 weeks!!! Let's just hope the plumbing does not go out next!
I just worked three long days on the unit. After doing a large work book first, I had a training moment on the PCA system, then I will have a test. One of the charge nurses just failed the test. Ok. PCAs are not through an IV site, but rather, through the subcutaneous route that I referred to earlier, usually in the upper arm.
Patients who are going for procedures such as a ct or xray are sent down in their bed with a porter and a nurse, along with an emergency bag with an ambu bag in it. When patients go to surgery, the nurse goes down with them and into the pre-surgical area. Then when they are ready to leave recovery, the nurse goes back down with the emergency bag, gets report from the recovery nurse, and brings them back up on the floor with the porter.
One clarification about the MRSA situation. Patients are nasally swabbed on admit and a week later in their nose. The patients who were negative initially, then positive later had it in their nose. Not in wounds.
I have seen several frontal/temporal lobectomies.
The weather in London today was fantastic. The sidewalks were crammed with people on the shopping streets. I am starting to look forward to more nice days.
I will see a lot of you in Portland. Cheers until then.
p.s. the elevator in my dorm will be out of order for 14 weeks!!! Let's just hope the plumbing does not go out next!
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
I am soon to come to the U.S.!!
February 16, 2009
Greetings to all!!! I have rallied from my four night shifts. It took a while, as they somewhat wiped me out. That is a long shift to endure through the night. It can be quite a surreal environment, with 24 sleeping or not bodies throughout the ward. There was one moment at about 10pm one evening when I wished I had my camera and permission to take the picture. The 6 Nation rugby tournament is going on, which apparently is a big deal here in the U.K. In one of the men’s bays a television was airing the game and about 5 men were all gathered around it, all of them with head bandages from their brain surgeries.
I have been seeing a lot of different types of surgery that are interesting to me, such as temporal and frontal lobectomies, that are done for people with seizures. I am looking forward to learning more about them.
Today I went to another new staff induction. I know I still have a few more days of induction. One part of the induction that has been the most impressive to me is the presentation that the fire safety manager does. It has been so informative and educational and has left an indelible mark on me in regards to fire awareness and procedure. The fire doors have never made more sense to me until now.
Yesterday I went to the opera La Boheme with my nurse friend, Jacqueline, at the Coliseum. What a beautiful theater, and the opera was very nice. We went to dinner afterwards. She is very interesting and I learn a lot from her about English ways in the medical field. As she is a neonatal nurse, she has a lot of interesting stories. One topic that she has talked about extensively is childbirth and the parent’s ability to totally call the shots regarding how the delivery goes, even if it leads to a poor outcome. According to her, the baby has no rights in the delivery scene, and that parents can refuse recommended treatment that would give the baby the safest delivery.
Afterwards we walked through Covent Garden and window-shopped.
I work three more long days, then head off for the states!!!!! Yeah!!! I am trying to see as many movies as I can to be ready for the Oscars!
Greetings to all!!! I have rallied from my four night shifts. It took a while, as they somewhat wiped me out. That is a long shift to endure through the night. It can be quite a surreal environment, with 24 sleeping or not bodies throughout the ward. There was one moment at about 10pm one evening when I wished I had my camera and permission to take the picture. The 6 Nation rugby tournament is going on, which apparently is a big deal here in the U.K. In one of the men’s bays a television was airing the game and about 5 men were all gathered around it, all of them with head bandages from their brain surgeries.
I have been seeing a lot of different types of surgery that are interesting to me, such as temporal and frontal lobectomies, that are done for people with seizures. I am looking forward to learning more about them.
Today I went to another new staff induction. I know I still have a few more days of induction. One part of the induction that has been the most impressive to me is the presentation that the fire safety manager does. It has been so informative and educational and has left an indelible mark on me in regards to fire awareness and procedure. The fire doors have never made more sense to me until now.
Yesterday I went to the opera La Boheme with my nurse friend, Jacqueline, at the Coliseum. What a beautiful theater, and the opera was very nice. We went to dinner afterwards. She is very interesting and I learn a lot from her about English ways in the medical field. As she is a neonatal nurse, she has a lot of interesting stories. One topic that she has talked about extensively is childbirth and the parent’s ability to totally call the shots regarding how the delivery goes, even if it leads to a poor outcome. According to her, the baby has no rights in the delivery scene, and that parents can refuse recommended treatment that would give the baby the safest delivery.
Afterwards we walked through Covent Garden and window-shopped.
I work three more long days, then head off for the states!!!!! Yeah!!! I am trying to see as many movies as I can to be ready for the Oscars!
Thursday, February 12, 2009
February 12, another cold, snowy day!
Greetings! I just worked 3 12.5 hour night shifts. I was worried about them dragging on forever, but they actually went by decently quickly. A very interesting environment, as you have a room filled with 24 people in various stages of sleep or not. As you walk around, the sounds of sleep are apparent, some people are just breathing in a very regular breathing pattern, while others are snoring, from quiet, gentle snoring, to loud snoring. Some patients are not asleep at all, as they may be reading, restless, and/or disturbing others. We as nurses work in a very dark environment, trying to keep everyone calm and quiet, and that can be a challenge. It is impressive to me to see some patients sleep through anything/everything that is going on around them. At 6am, the place starts coming to life again, as vital signs are started and medication passed out. By 730am, the lights are on and we start preparing for handover, where we go from bed to bed and do report.
I work with many nurses from Africa. Last night one of them was shopping for a 4-wheel drive vehicle to take to Malawi. He would have it shipped to a port, then drive it to his country, about 8 hours away. I offered to help him make the drive. Another nurse was planning her trip to her home in Japan. With 7 weeks of vacation a year, nurses are able to do some regular commuting home. One nurse is from the Philipines, and her husband and two young sons live there.
I have tonight off, then do another night shift tomorrow night. I am not minding it at all. There is one patient who I have been talking to who is very interesting. He has been a pub owner in Kent, England, and has some interesting stories to share. Last night I took in my ipod so that he could listen to the Robert Plantt and Allison Kraus cd, Raising Sand, that won 6 Grammys last week. Thank you, Mike, for loaning me your cd so that I could put it on my ipod!
I have attached pictures of the "sluice" machine that I described earlier. It always chuckles me when I use it. You use your foot to open it, slide in the bedpans/urinals, then start it. It sounds somewhat like a dishwasher, and then, there you go, clean items!!
I hope this finds everyone well. I have been here a month and a half, and despite the fact that I am marveling at what I am doing, I always have a moment of the day where I long for Portland and everyone who goes along with it!! Cheers to all!!!
I work with many nurses from Africa. Last night one of them was shopping for a 4-wheel drive vehicle to take to Malawi. He would have it shipped to a port, then drive it to his country, about 8 hours away. I offered to help him make the drive. Another nurse was planning her trip to her home in Japan. With 7 weeks of vacation a year, nurses are able to do some regular commuting home. One nurse is from the Philipines, and her husband and two young sons live there.
I have tonight off, then do another night shift tomorrow night. I am not minding it at all. There is one patient who I have been talking to who is very interesting. He has been a pub owner in Kent, England, and has some interesting stories to share. Last night I took in my ipod so that he could listen to the Robert Plantt and Allison Kraus cd, Raising Sand, that won 6 Grammys last week. Thank you, Mike, for loaning me your cd so that I could put it on my ipod!
I have attached pictures of the "sluice" machine that I described earlier. It always chuckles me when I use it. You use your foot to open it, slide in the bedpans/urinals, then start it. It sounds somewhat like a dishwasher, and then, there you go, clean items!!
I hope this finds everyone well. I have been here a month and a half, and despite the fact that I am marveling at what I am doing, I always have a moment of the day where I long for Portland and everyone who goes along with it!! Cheers to all!!!
Sunday, February 8, 2009
A good day!
Television update. I am on my fifth antennae. I think this one is a keeper. I have my shadows down to 5, and I am not having to constantly move it around!! Yeah!!
Also, I finally bought a bongle, a stick to put into my computer that enables me to access internet in my room!!! yeah!! So it will be interesting to see how long it lasts. It is a program where you pay as you go.
I went and saw Benjamin Button with my nurse friend from Scotland. Good movie. We then stopped and had a burger and talked. She would like to come to the US with me and see an American hospital. I told her that I was somewhat dreading the night shifts that I have coming up, afraid that they are going to drag on forever. She suggested I bring in a book to read!!
Cheers!
Also, I finally bought a bongle, a stick to put into my computer that enables me to access internet in my room!!! yeah!! So it will be interesting to see how long it lasts. It is a program where you pay as you go.
I went and saw Benjamin Button with my nurse friend from Scotland. Good movie. We then stopped and had a burger and talked. She would like to come to the US with me and see an American hospital. I told her that I was somewhat dreading the night shifts that I have coming up, afraid that they are going to drag on forever. She suggested I bring in a book to read!!
Cheers!
February 8, Still cold!
February 7, 2009
After working 3, 12.5-hour shifts, I find myself exhausted. I did get myself up, though, and found another market today. Shepard’s Bush Market. It was a decent market and I enjoyed browsing around. Afterwards, I treated myself to an all-you-can-eat Thai restaurant, and to the movie, Doubt. The subject matter of the movie caught me by surprise, as I had not heard anything about the content. It was quite good. I am also planning on going to another movie tomorrow with my new friend, Jacqueline, so this will be a double-header weekend.
Work is going quite well. I really enjoy the people I work with, and find them to be a lot of fun. I find the amenities to be challenging, though. For those of us who have grumbled about our break room in the new tower, believe me, it is spacious compared to what we have at the National. There is no kitchen facility for the staff, and we are at the mercy of using a kitchen that is used for the patients, and the staff who run it. I find myself constantly in trouble with the caterer, Rita, but I have to admit that I have dug in my heels on this one. There are four microwaves, but we can use only one, and it is in a corner that is usually inaccessible. The other three for some reason are not to be used by us. Well, when you are the third person in line and looking at three other microwaves, it is just too tempting to not use one!! So I did and I will, despite being yelled at! Then the only sink that is accessible to use I have been told I cannot use, as supposedly it needs to be bleached out after every use! No, Donna, you cannot borrow that fork or a teacup, even though you plan on returning them. (Now, I have just gotten to where I sneak out a fork or a teacup!!) Anyway, I guess you can say I have chosen this battle. I have been trying to butter up Rita, but it is going to be a long, slow process.
We had in interesting situation on our unit. All patients are screened for MRSA on admit and every seven days thereafter. A lot of patients stay a long time, a very long time, sometimes, a non-understandably long time from my view (lumbar lami with no complications for 3 weeks because he felt like he needed to stay there?) So anyway, we had seven patients who came in with MRSA, and then we had two more with MRSA who did not come in with it. (MRSA is a bacteria that is resistant to antibiotics and can be devastating if entered into a body system where it does not normally live, such as wounds. It can be spread between patients by staff when good hand washing is not done.) So our unit was closed to new patients, and the ward was strip cleaned and patients moved around. We ended up having bays with “clean girls”, “dirty girls”, “clean boys”, and “dirty boys”. It was quite an interesting process to observe. There are 24 rooms with the curtains, and three private rooms. Some of the dirty people were put in the private rooms, and it was very surprising to me that they complained about having a private room!! One of them was an elderly woman with a halo brace, who could barely walk without swaying side to side, and she kept getting up and leaving her room crying about how lonely she was!
Oh, big news. I passed my medication-passing test!!!!!! I guess I am somewhat of an overachiever when it comes to passing this test, as most people fail it a couple of times first. The first part of the process was to do a workbook. I had to resubmit it twice before it passed, as I was having a hard time getting my answers exactly like they wanted them. Then I was observed and drilled with medication passing. I have to say, it was quite a thorough assessment. Medication passing is quite different. The meds are kept in a locked trolley full of boxes and bottles, and you have to hunt and search through them to find them. I learned that the word dispersible means dissolvable. Almost everyone there gets paracatemol (Tylenol), 1,000 mg every 5 hours. So I was so happy that I passed the test!!!! Until then, I was considered as a new grad! I hope this moves me up a grade in the tier of nursing!
Update on my TV. I took back the fourth antennae today. I was having a hard time getting fewer than 10 shadows regardless of where I stood in the room. I took it back to one store with the plan on getting another one at a different store. But by the time I got to it, it was closed!!!! Darn. So tomorrow, another antennae will need to be purchased.
Julie F., today’s picture is for your benefit!! Enjoy.
I am hearing from some of you that you are not able to post comments! Sad~~
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
Short update.
Feb 2, 2009
Today we woke up to London covered in snow. They said it was the most snowfall in 18 years! No buses were running and the tube and train were very delayed. The airlines also had cancellations and delays. I was to have gone in for a “moving and handling” inservice, but offered to go onto the ward instead, and was quickly taken up on my offer. The walk in was quite surreal, as London without buses is an odd sensation.
Ok, I am still struggling with this experience. I need a debriefing; I need to discuss the patient cases that I have seen. I need to talk. Our ward is closed to taking new patients because of a mrsa spread. I had a patient who we were giving peripheral iv phenytoin while her iv site was painful. Just a myriad of events that I need to discuss.
I have tomorrow off, then head in for a 3-day stint.
Enjoy the pictures!!
Today we woke up to London covered in snow. They said it was the most snowfall in 18 years! No buses were running and the tube and train were very delayed. The airlines also had cancellations and delays. I was to have gone in for a “moving and handling” inservice, but offered to go onto the ward instead, and was quickly taken up on my offer. The walk in was quite surreal, as London without buses is an odd sensation.
Ok, I am still struggling with this experience. I need a debriefing; I need to discuss the patient cases that I have seen. I need to talk. Our ward is closed to taking new patients because of a mrsa spread. I had a patient who we were giving peripheral iv phenytoin while her iv site was painful. Just a myriad of events that I need to discuss.
I have tomorrow off, then head in for a 3-day stint.
Enjoy the pictures!!
Sunday, February 1, 2009
February 1, 2009. A cold, snowy day!
February 1, 2009
I just worked 3 long days, laced with outings in London with Dow. It is quite cold, windy, and there are snow showers. Dow and I spent the morning helping a girl move into her dorm room with the help of her parents. The elevator is not working, and it is 72 steps up to the fourth floor, or there is another route with a long walk and many fire doors to another elevator. Between the two choices, we helped them move her things into her room. She had enough belongings to completely fill up the space of her room. She is separated from her husband, but there is a 2-year waiting time before they can divorce! She told me this building is to have cable TV access this month!!!!!
Our outing today was to go have Sunday dinner at the pub where we went last week. That dinner is so incredible!! Again, anyone coming over to London, I will treat you to this dinner!!! It is cold and windy today, and has actually snowed enough to cover the ground. Therefore, we have had a quiet day in the room, watching some good TV. Yesterday we took a bus to Greenwich and had a pub meal, as it was too cold to do much else. But it was a nice, long bus ride that we enjoyed. On the way back we got caught up in a traffic jam because of a demonstration related to Gaza, but it was actually a good thing, because the bus went slowly over the river Thames, and we were able to look out at the sites, including the buildings of parliament and Big Ben.
Tomorrow I have my mandatory, moving and handling class. I am now off of supernumerary (being with a preceptor), but I have yet to take my drug-passing test before I can pass medication on my own. I believe this involves being with an instructor and demonstrating my competency to be able to pass medication by following the 5 rights. I have completed a workbook with questions regarding medication knowledge. They have pca’s, but that requires another workbook and test. The attitude towards pca’s seems to be quite different than what I am used to. The policy is that there needs to be nursing one to one to assure safety for patients with pca’s. There is only one medication, morphine, and there is only one setting.
I now have my uniform and identification, so I am feeling quite equipped for the job. I also have black shoes, but I wore them 2 days in a row, and I had to take a break from them because I could hardly walk by the end of the second shift! So it was back to my white Keds for a while.
I absolutely love going to work; however, there are a few issues that I am having a hard time with, and they basically center around medical care. I am looking forward to talking to colleagues in Portland and see if I can make sense of my observations. When a nurse has worked in a specialty for years, there is an expected course of medical care that she would expect for patients. What I am seeing here does not necessarily match those expectations, but again, different is different.
Some observations. Medication boxes also have Braille on them. No filter needles and a lot of glass ampules. Sharp containers are infrequent, and the hole to drop the sharp in is gaping.
Oh by the way, have I mentioned that I have 7 weeks of vacation a year? Yep, true story. They are already pushing vacation on me. This is enabling me to come home to Portland for a week the end of February!!
I just worked 3 long days, laced with outings in London with Dow. It is quite cold, windy, and there are snow showers. Dow and I spent the morning helping a girl move into her dorm room with the help of her parents. The elevator is not working, and it is 72 steps up to the fourth floor, or there is another route with a long walk and many fire doors to another elevator. Between the two choices, we helped them move her things into her room. She had enough belongings to completely fill up the space of her room. She is separated from her husband, but there is a 2-year waiting time before they can divorce! She told me this building is to have cable TV access this month!!!!!
Our outing today was to go have Sunday dinner at the pub where we went last week. That dinner is so incredible!! Again, anyone coming over to London, I will treat you to this dinner!!! It is cold and windy today, and has actually snowed enough to cover the ground. Therefore, we have had a quiet day in the room, watching some good TV. Yesterday we took a bus to Greenwich and had a pub meal, as it was too cold to do much else. But it was a nice, long bus ride that we enjoyed. On the way back we got caught up in a traffic jam because of a demonstration related to Gaza, but it was actually a good thing, because the bus went slowly over the river Thames, and we were able to look out at the sites, including the buildings of parliament and Big Ben.
Tomorrow I have my mandatory, moving and handling class. I am now off of supernumerary (being with a preceptor), but I have yet to take my drug-passing test before I can pass medication on my own. I believe this involves being with an instructor and demonstrating my competency to be able to pass medication by following the 5 rights. I have completed a workbook with questions regarding medication knowledge. They have pca’s, but that requires another workbook and test. The attitude towards pca’s seems to be quite different than what I am used to. The policy is that there needs to be nursing one to one to assure safety for patients with pca’s. There is only one medication, morphine, and there is only one setting.
I now have my uniform and identification, so I am feeling quite equipped for the job. I also have black shoes, but I wore them 2 days in a row, and I had to take a break from them because I could hardly walk by the end of the second shift! So it was back to my white Keds for a while.
I absolutely love going to work; however, there are a few issues that I am having a hard time with, and they basically center around medical care. I am looking forward to talking to colleagues in Portland and see if I can make sense of my observations. When a nurse has worked in a specialty for years, there is an expected course of medical care that she would expect for patients. What I am seeing here does not necessarily match those expectations, but again, different is different.
Some observations. Medication boxes also have Braille on them. No filter needles and a lot of glass ampules. Sharp containers are infrequent, and the hole to drop the sharp in is gaping.
Oh by the way, have I mentioned that I have 7 weeks of vacation a year? Yep, true story. They are already pushing vacation on me. This is enabling me to come home to Portland for a week the end of February!!
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
