May God bring one to you!

Over the years, I have been in hospital countless times and I can say that it's nurses who are dedicated to their profession who have made my stays bearable.

I have had many surgeries and illnesses and by far the most of my admissions were for a spinal condition called Sheurman's Disease.  I was in traction for two weeks at a time and that happened about every 3 months. It was such a trying time.

Unable to sit up, I depended upon the nurses for everything. Bathing, eating, toileting. It was such a drag. But even so, that drag would have been so much worse if it weren't for the good nurses who attended me.

I got to know those who were true nurses and those who were just in it for the money. The true nurses were compassionate, kind and helpful, whereas the others would just plonk my tray in front of me and leave it until a caring nurse would notice it was untouched and come and help me.

Asking for a bedpan was a guage for this as the uncaring nurse would tut because I had emptied my bladder so many times already and she had better things to do... but Florence Nightingale would smile and breeze through it and leave me feeling relaxed instead of tense.

Bathing was another time the true nurse came to the fore... removing my traction- 7lb water bags on each leg.... no grumbling and her only tuts were seeing the blisters under the adhesive strapping that held them on my legs.

Seeing the blisters bursting and leaving raw skin, she took great pains to clean them and after helping me wash in bed, she doctored them and used crepe bandaging for the traction...

I commented that it didnt sting like the last time the other nurse dressed them with pure undiluted methylated spirits, and after hearing this she spluttered and blew up... exiting the ward to address the nurse who was in it for the money about proper treatment of blisters and the need to check on them. She was disgusted with that nurse and even told her so.

Once again it was easy to tell the dedicated nurses from the opportunistic ones... I was grateful for that kind nurse and I told her so. Her response was typical of a kind heart for she told me it was difficult enough for me to endure without developing blisters that kept on being covered again with the same adhesive that had caused the damage in the first place.

I have heard people say of kind nurses that they are angels, and I believe a lot of them by expressing kindness and compassion, emulate them, for they exude the fruit of the Spirit.

So today, if any kind nurses read this, I would like to thank you for making such a dark time in my life (many times over), more bearable. I am grateful and pray there are many more like you. My prayer is should you need help in hospital, that God brings a caring nurse to you.  

© Glenys Robyn Hicks

Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers. 3 John 1:2