The Perfect Workday

patients were grateful for our care, my discouragement stemmed from a personal goal: to influence medical management. My goal was to

My work day began the night before my shift started, as I received an email from my supervisor and was pleased to see my favorite patients on my list. Anna was scheduled first on my itinerary. She had become a quadriplegic after a serious fall down a flight of steps. Next was Mr. William, who was dying of a brain tumor. This man had the best attitude towards life, and always kept me laughing. My last patient of the day was Mrs. Patsy. She was very dear to my heart, and I had grown very close to the family, because I had been seeing her for over six months. Every time I walked into Mrs. Patsy house, she wanted an update and recent pictures of my children. It is unusual to have everyone agree on the scheduled time, but this warm summer evening was the exception. Tomorrow’s schedule was looking great and I was ready to get some rest.

It wasn’t enough that at sixteen, Ava’s life had become as gray and bleak and lifeless as a winter tree. But, the day she was bitten by a fox, she knew things could only get worse.

ARE YOU DISORGANIZED? I CAN GIVE YOU SO MANY REASONS TO “GET IT TOGETHER.” BEING DISORGANIZED LEADS TO OTHER PROBLEMS SUCH AS, LOSING THINGS AND FORGETTING THINGS. GETTING ORGANIZED CAN LESSEN THE AMOUNT OF WORK YOU ACTUALLY DO. YOU WILL FEEL SO MUCH BETTER. TAKING THE TIME TO ORGANIZE CAN LEAD TO A PRODUCTIVE WORKDAY. MOST PEOPLE HAVE CONSTANT DISTRACTIONS AT WORK, BUT THE NUMBER 1 DISTRACTION IS NOT BEING ABLE TO FIND SOMETHING TO COMPLETE A TASK. I WILL PROVIDE YOU WITH STEPS AND TIPS ON HOW TO GET YOUR OFFICE ORGANIZED. IF YOU COLOR CODE THINGS, THAT WOULD MAKE THEM EASIER TO FIND. WRITE A LIST FOR OUTFITS YOU WILL WEAR FOR THE WEEK, SO YOU WILL NOT WEAR THE SAME OUTFITS SO CLOSE TOGETHER. FOR ME, IT’S ALL ABOUT HAVING MORE TIME WITH

At this particular moment, when Melody is in the hospital facing interviews and examinations, it is important for her counselor to develop a working alliance with her. The counselor must quickly establish some form of trust through positive regard and patience and then must be completely honest and clear with Melody about what she faces both today with her interviews and examinations and in the near future with the emotional and physical reactions she will have to her trauma.

Two hours until shift change and Sally Smith, RN was looking forward to going home and putting her aching legs up on the ottoman and drinking an ice cold Coke. She was thinking to herself that the patients were so needy all the time, she felt she gave them all she had and still all she had was not enough. All Sally heard was “get me this” and “get me that”…

These past two years have made it hard for her to go through life. I asked her if the loss of my brother was something hard for her. She told me that she was very devastated, very sad, and that she felt that the world turned upside down. She always had thoughts of thinking if there was a future, but all in all, she takes it one step at a time. She always knows that God is there to help her. I connected to this question as well, I understood how we both felt, her tone of voice changed immediately, and I knew that right from the beginning. This was probably the hardest question to

In September 2015, I had an opportunity to join the team of volunteers of the Inspira Medical Center in Woodbury. I joined the Emergency Department. My shifts were once a week for three to six hours. I had a chance to interact with patients, mostly to help ease their anxiety and fear. This experience was valuable because it allowed me not just to observe, but also to look at healthcare from the perspective of a patient. I realized that I did not have to be a licensed practitioner to understand patients’ concerns and fears. I also realized that any effort on my part to help ease such worries would go a long way towards helping the patient feel more secure in themselves and their

I wandered throughout the hospital hallways. An unfamiliar place to me, thus I began to explore. It was 9 am and some patients had already lined up to see their physicians. I was shadowing Dr. Waterman, a family medicine resident. I followed her on the morning patient rounds, she would introduce me to her patients, asking for their permission for me to observe. As the shadow, I tried to remain imperceptible but observant. That day, I got exposed to different medical disciplines. In one case was an 83-year-old Caucasian female with dementia. She had come with her two children who broke down in tears when she couldn’t even remember who they were. Dr. Waterman’s response transcended beyond patient care and got families involved. She would report

Sitting in the waiting room at the doctor’s office, 7-year-old me swung my feet back and forth under the generic, time-worn furniture and anxiously wrung my sweaty palms. I’d been to the doctor’s before, but with each returning yearly visit the dread that sunk to the bottom of my gut never shrunk. “Jillianne Carrasco?” The nurse called. My stomach turned. I began to shoot my mother a pleading look, but she wasted no time in grabbing my hand and leading me to the smiling nurse waiting at the door, and we both followed her through the pasty white halls to a customary exam room. The nurse closed the door behind us and asked me to take a seat on the crinkly tissue paper cot. She smiled warmly, likely taking note of my nervous breathing and shaky hands.

In this environment, I thrived. I adored the patients I encountered here and was fascinated by listening to the nurses speak. They spoke to each other fast, in their own obscure language. “Is patient x’s blood pressure

Upon arrival, I was matched with Ann Malkani, who greeted me with a smile, showed me to a small room, and began her life story. I recorded the session. Listening back on it, I realized that Ann and I were put together because we both believed in compassion. “In helping others, we help

Taking a seat in a cushy chair by the window, Casey started writing down the necessary facts. The room was empty, although the office had the soothing ambience of a spa. She wondered why there weren’t more patients. Soft lights, strong incense, and new age music piped throughout created a peaceful, calm environment. However, none of this worked to eliminate her nervousness.

Even I found it almost impossible to let her say what had happened to her as she perceived

“Hey there” John looked over his shoulder at the smiling face of his new coworker. John greeted him as hallway smiled back not wanting to talk since he had woken up at 5:00am that morning. He quickly dashed over to his office and switched on his computer. He thought about the nine years of intensive study that he had to go through. The loud ringing of his pager interrupted his thoughts. He answered a few nurses difficult questions about what medicines to prescribe what to do with a few difficult patients. He placed his phone down a little nervous wondering if he had just killed someone by prescribing the wrong medicine. He grabbed his clipboard, jacket and stethoscope and went to go meet his first patient. “Mrs. Anderson, how are