Heather-Ann Boucher
I'm Heather-Anne, a Registered Nurse and Holistic Health Practitioner, also with a Master of Science degree in business management. I have worked in healthcare for the past 25 years caring for patients of all ages with many chronic health problems and in a variety of clinical settings. For the past 10 years I have been researching holistic and complimentary therapies; blending them into my practice and starting my own online collection of proactive health strategies found at www.heartsofayurveda.com
In reference to needles being in the wrong place. I have found needles placed improperly. I have worked in facilities where there were no sharps on the med carts. The nurses would put the needles in the slots anyway. I went to dispose of the sharps and was shocked that they had done that. This was done due to upper management not ordering enough in the beginning. I did use a tool and carefully remove the needles and replace with new sharps. I kindly reminded some of the younger nurses about the dangers of having no sharps. There was sharps stacked in a closet in the med room full of old sharps, which needed to be disposed of. Some of these containers did not have lids, I took care of that and put them in their proper place to ensure safety.
Heatheranne’s article concerning nurses caring for nurses is so timely when the entire healthcare system is overworked and underpaid. Having been a caregiver for a very long time, taking care of ourselves and those around us is a vital ingredient to sustaining a healthy life. As Heatheranne so clearly stated, I believe this is an issue that has been left unaddressed for far too long. Thanks for a great reminder.
This concern for “self-care” for nurses is not new. I am a retired nurse and was asked recently by a woman in another profession why “most” nurses are over weight”. Also, at one point in my career I was interviewing with a man for an RN position in marketing, and, he said “but, you are not a real nurse”. When I asked him to explain he said he had expected someone looking “more clinical”. I did not question him further. We do not need to take less care of ourselves than we do our loved ones and our patients. Finding time for restoration of our bodies and our spirits will always enhance our ability to care for others. I now facilitate Restorative Journaling classes. Spending 10 to 20 min. a few times a week can help us clarify the best activities to help restore our “get up and go”. Each of us owes it to ourselves and to the people we care for to practice self-care. Self-care is a skill that can be learned just as we learn to start IV’s. I have great admiration for nurses and the work that they do. Fewer accidents and great attitudes come from practicing self-care!