Oana Fagarasan is a dedicated registered nurse working on Richmond Wing. Here she is with her colleagues: Dana who also a registered nurse and Craig who works in Occupational Therapy.
I have always been in awe of people who nurse - and now I am even more so!
Let me tell you something about Oana and then I'll let you into my experiences whilst being with her. Oana trained as a nurse midwife in her native Romania 35 years ago, coming to live and nurse in the UK for the past 15 years. We are delighted to have her on the team at Care for Veterans where she has nursed with care and compassion for 2 and a half years. Her skills as a nurse are without question bringing an eye for order and calm as well as genuine love and concern for our residents. Oana told me that she has recently passed her Mentorship Training - congratulations - which means that she can teach/mentor student nurses and share her wealth of experience with the next generation. I could see how good she is going to be at this in the way that she manages her own time and also how she enabled me to be part of the team today. I felt that I was under the wing of a kind and competent nurse.
Oana's joy is to be a nurse and to look after the people in her care. I have always thought that it requires courage to take responsibility for the complex needs of another person - the medical and physical but also their emotional, social and spiritual needs too. Today I could see how naturally Oana accepts this responsibility, managing to integrate all these aspects of care into each interaction. She told me that her challenge is to 'understand their silence' which is a reflective appraisal of nursing. I admired her honesty. From what I observed Oana achieves an effective and personal level of engagement with every resident. I think, for me, this quality is at the heart of what it means to be a good nurse - to be willing and able to listen deeply to the unspoken soul of the vulnerable which ensures not only their well being but their security, dignity and worth. Yes, I am truly in awe of what it means to be a nurse....
I am a little embarassed to tell you of my activities today - I am so far from being a nurse! - but at least I was able to follow instructions and be a good 'runner' - so maybe I was a little bit helpful. I helped to make beds; I collected equipment from another wing; I made toast and marmalade for a resident; I sourced and gave a drink to a resident; I answered the phone; I chatted to residents - but mainly I observed Oana who worked collaboratively alongside fellow nurses to administer drugs, share information at a handover and change a resident's dressings. She also worked competently and with authority to 'run' the ward ensuring that the needs of each of the residents in her care were met.
Interesting fact: I was impressed with the traditional nursing skills and values that I saw being implemented to provide individualised care but also with 'modern' innovations such as the use of IT and technology. Every care intervention is recorded onto a secure computer system to ensure that there is effective communication between all the staff regarding each resident's health and well being. Camera technology was used to record the status of tissue viability and then communicated to the specialist nurses responsible for quality control and tissue viability. It is fascinating and reassuring to see how computers and instant communication through secured email is being used so effectively to maintain excellence in care.
Amazing statistic: Oana told me that she has never failed to obtain a blood sample. If you have ever had blood taken you will appreciate how difficult it can be to 'find a vein' so I am hugely impressed with Oana's expertise. I hope that in her mentor role she will be able to pass on the secret of her success!
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