The Adventure Begins!

[Raven]

Hogwarts and Doctor Who! That is exactly how I feel these days! What time warp brought me to this time and place? With a world full of Daleks and Cybermen that get defeated with a swish and flick!

Life has bounded ahead in a spin almost out of control. And I am getting ready to walk out of the Tardis onto the grounds of Hogwarts school of Nursing and Midwifery! Febuary 19 is the zero hour.

Can you fathom what the interior of a British institution of higher learning is like? They have computers that rise out of the desk tops like some science fiction movie! I have at my disposal a 'plastic' man, who like in a certain Doctor Who episode, breathes, poops, bleeds and 'dies' just like a real person. With one click of the mouse, I have all the written literature of the ages on medicine thats ever been put to disk. Do you realise how long Britain has been keeping records and cataloging books? I am frankly amazed that they dont have the original blueprints on Stonehenge! And ask me if I am excited about the prospects of my name going on one of those official rolls!

This is one of the biggest adventures I could ever have! And this is as good a place as any to keep a diary of it all.

[Raven]

Febuary.........Just quit my job on Friday. Ever feel like you're jumping into an abyss without a shute? Well that about sums it up. It all starts next Tuesday. The whole process is daunting enough. First you fork out £15 to apply. Then you wait.......and wait some more. Finally they send you a nice and polite little letter asking you to please attend interview as you have been short listed. Then you get all nervous.......and wait. Finally you have your interview, and go home. To wait. About 3 weeks later, they inform you of your offer. But hold on......this isnt it! Whats a crb? And what do you mean I need jabs? OMG!!!! And 3 more references from folks who have known you for more than 2 years? (That one was easy. I've been here 4.)

Well I have sailed through my health checks. What should have been an easy crb check, has turned into a mess. Someone at uni put the wrong birthdate down when they filled in my details. So when I finally call the crb folks.....I had to confirm my b-day. Well.....now I wait another 4 weeks for that to come back. But the good news is....I get to start anyway. Just a delay on my bursary. WHAT???? Means I dont get funded till that comes back. Broke and starving.........Well not exactly, but still......it stinks.

BTW, the nice folks whom I used to work with gave me a nice nurses fob watch as a parting gift. Aint that sweet? Now all I have to do is figure out how to get to Kent from Southend! LOL! Think I will have to go by faerie! (ferry)

I called my local hospital. Found out they have a slot for student nurses! Wont be recruiting till march though. It pays more than auxillary does. YAAAAAAAAY!

I know this may sound a bit trite to those who dont know me, but as a qualified and certified respiratory therapist, it means quite a bit. It means I can FINALLY get back to doing what I have loved doing for the last 20 years!!! It's been a long 4 year wait.

[Raven]

End of first semester. Beginning of second. I know how to write an essay now. I have successfully done my first two placements. I can now take care of the pressures sores from hell. I can give you insulin jabs, and pass out a plethora of pills. Whats best is I know why i am doing it, and what they are supposed to do. I can do the larvae therapy with my eyes closed. (still hack behind my teeth as i am doing it tho.) I do my first potions final at the end of the year. I can bathe you, roll you, and change your nappy. I can assure you, all is well. I can cry with you, laugh with you, and yes it's fine. I can advise you, lecture you, all while I am writing my notes. I can multi task likes noone's business. All before my morning coffee. And yes....I hear NURSENURSE! in my sleep. Whats worse is.....I respond.


What exactly this means is....I've PASSED my first semester of a crusty 'ol english institution of higher learning! If 'ol Florence knew what we were up to these days, her hair would curl in her bonnet!

[Raven]

END OF FIRST YEAR
It's taken a week to recover. The transformation is almost complete. I am no longer a respiratory therapist, and almost a nurse.
My university library is one of the most haunted in Britain. It's called the Drill Hall. 135 squaddies were killed there during a german bomb raid in WW1. They were using it as a barracks then. I think they would approve the use of it today.
(it even has a restricted section!) We have pictures hanging on the walls of them. Tough blokes who look like they are in their 30's but in reality are only in their teens. Life was alot harder then. When did we become so spoiled?
My classmates are dropping out left, right and centre. They have their various reasons, but for the most part, it's the program. The NMC demands a rigorous 2500 practice hours. It seperates the girls from the nurses. (no blokes in F08)
I have spent the last 12 months up to my elbows in various body fluids and excrement. You know what? Poo stinks! I have had triumph as well as heartbreak and shock. The latest heartbreak was a beautiful lady who I was talking and laughing with one minute, then the next she was gone. Like a soft summer breeze. Gone.
Life is like that I suppose. The greatest gift I have been taught so far is the gift of reflection.
I can now relive tragic and horrible moments and put some perspective to them. Then pack them away like the treasures of the past. We make new friends, then they disappear like an afternoon shadow following the sun.
Christmas time is not a good time in hospital. Alot of folks choose that time of year to take their leave of this world. A bigger proportion than you can imagine! All those unopened Christmas presents. I think Christmas should be in summer, when nature itself is alive and blooming. Not in the winter when nature itself says it's time to go to sleep.
Preparing for year two is getting ready to learn the meat and potatoes of nursing. First module up to bat is the 'caring for the adult patient in hospital'.
So what the heck have I been doing for the last twelve months???

[Raven]

END OF FIRST SEMESTER, YEAR TWO.

18 months to go. Halfway there....It seems like a lifetime. Sometimes I really dont understand these people. They dont teach pharmacology, yet expect you to hand out serious medicine everyday. They dont teach medical terminology, yet expect you to hold intelligable conversations with doctors. What they do teach however is a load of liberal artsy bunk and expect you to feel competent at the end of 3 years.
The folks that teach you are a weird breed of human. Students are a nasty disease they must suffer under a martyrs mantle. It does not matter if you were previously considered a professional in your own right. You are now a STUDENT and that means you are basic filth.
Pompous only begins to describe the basic requirements to become an academic.

I thank goodness that I dont ever aspire to become one. The way I see it,...those who cant do...teach.
At this time I am no longer suffering pangs of self-doubt every time I hand in an essay. I have learnt to 'just answer the question'. Even if that question is so stupid to be believable.
I am a Nurse now. My last placement proved that. What was at the beginning, overwhelming to the point of suicide, is now quite manageable.

My cohort has fallen apart. Only 12 survivors out of 30. They couldnt grasp Anatomy and Physiology. Apparently they dont teach kids biology in Britain. It's an elective subject, they say. I cant comment on the truth of that since I received a seriously robust 'you will learn this, dam!t' American education.

Their sense of professionalism (NHS) is much different than I am used to. It is more of a social network, gossip page type here. Seems as if only the old Matrons could hold together any sense of discipline here. Since they lost those, it has fallen apart. The heads of Nursing seem to be only interested in how many earrings a student has in, or if her hair is up high enough. (yes I experienced that personally) versus staff levels, infection rates, clean wards, ward closures etc.. I miss the clean, sterile smell of a U.S. hospital. I miss the crisp professionalism I got used to. I am tired of being viewed with suspicion, and being laughed at over my mid-west accent. I am not an enemy. (my patients like me well enough, and they trust in the care I give them)

Maybe I am just tired after an extremely trying semester. I am going to go camping and get lost in the magic of Great Britain and forget entirely about being a Nurse, for about 6 weeks......sigh...(as if)

[Raven]

Well back at Hogwarts after a brilliant 5 week placement. Wound clinic. It does exactly what it says on the box!
I am getting impatient for Febuary. 3rd and final year starts then.
The summer holiday is exactly what the doctor ordered. And I actually DID forget about being a nurse for awhile. I am a nurse now. Transition has firmly been made.
The modules for this semester have been really condensed like Campbells soup. 10 week modules squished into 5.
But the most amazing thing is the relationships with other students. I find myself disconnecting with my group. Some are immature and trifling, which is a horrifying thought, thinking they will actually be let loose to work on people! And the other half are totally beyond my ability to relate to. It will be interesting to see who is still standing at the end. (I will of course!)
My grades for the first semester were as expected. I passed all of my essays. 2 of them really well. With honours. I actually cant wait to start on this lot. (another 4)
District Nurse placement is next. That is going to be one helluva ride!