INTERNATIONAL Nurses Day is celebrated on 12 May – the anniversary of Florence Nightingale’s birth.
This year, the occasion was marked stylishly at Shoal Bay’s Harbourside care facility.
A morning tea was organised to thank current and former nursing staff for their hard work in caring for the residents.
After some fascinating stories, recounted by former staff members, a game of “who can bandage the fastest” was organised.
Shifts continued as normal elsewhere in the facility, where a registered nurse (RN) in each of the three buildings leads a team of staff around the clock, seven days a week.
Claire Pleym explained what a typical day in the life of a Harbourside nurse entails.
“I start my shift at 6am with a handover from the night staff,” she said.
“After that, I plan my day, review any wounds that need attention, appointments that need to be followed up, and any other tasks that require prioritising.
“At 7am I begin my rounds which include all medications and the administering of insulin.
“During breakfast, I visit the dining area to check in with the residents, have a chat, and see how everyone is doing.
“After breakfast, I start wound care, and depending on how many there are, this can take me through to around 11am.
“[Then] we have a team huddle to touch base, where the staff let me know how things are going and flag any resident concerns.
“Based on this, I may need to check in with certain residents or, if everything’s stable, spend some time doing paperwork.
“Just before lunch, I do another round of insulin administration.
“Throughout the day, I also respond to requests for pain relief, nausea, dizziness etc. which includes doing pain charting, taking vitals, and writing up progress notes, fitting these in wherever possible.
“The afternoon is mostly dedicated to documentation until the handover with the afternoon staff at 1:30pm.
“After handover, I finalise any remaining documentation, complete my shift report, and then head home.”
Claire’s workload is just one example of why International Nurses Day recognises the contributions nursing staff make to society.
By Simon EKINS
