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My first placement was on a rehabilitation ward for stroke patients.

Mrs. Smith was an elderly patient who was transferred from an acute site and admitted here to undergo physiotherapy and occupational therapy to be prepared to go home. She had suffered a stroke and as a result become very nervous and anxious afterwards, which prevented her to mobilise freely. Although, she was not physically affected, she would need reassurance and attention to gain her confidence back.

Mrs. Smith was showing anxiety about her condition, because she used to be a very active and independent lady before suffering the stroke. Therefore, she kept trying to stand up on her own. In this particular day, the auxiliary nurses raised the alarm that Mrs. Smith was on the floor. The qualified nurses arrived straight away, and examined the lady physically, to make sure that she was not harmed in any way, and got her up of the floor. As a student and new to this situation, I did not know what to do, and stood aside observing what the qualified and auxiliaries were doing, when I realised that they needed my help. So, I took upon myself to get a wheel chair and a pillow, just in case they were needed.

Mrs. Smith was very frightened and distressed. When seeing this I also felt very unsettled and worried, and, felt that I wanted to help her. Although the qualified nurses were trying to reassure and calm her down, she was very nervous and was not paying attention to the instructions given by the nurses. I was not actively taking part on this situation, as I was not sure if I would do the right thing when helping the lady of the floor, as I was not confident enough. So, I decided just to pay attention to the nurse’s instructions, and therefore, learn the right procedures in this situation. At this time, I was faced with many thoughts and frightened for the lady’s well being.

Seeing people distressed unsettles me, and if I am not familiar with the situation, I feel useless, and not self confident to act quickly. The bad side of this is that I felt insecure, and I thought that I did not know what to do. The good side was that I realised that after all I knew what to do, as I had some practical classes, at the University, however, I did not feel confident to do it. Observing the nurses giving instructions reminded me of the practical classes, and the literature I have been reading, such as the Nursing Standard, and the Nursing Times, as well as moving and handling training that I have done on a previous workplace. However, thinking back, I realise that what we learn in the books sometimes does not prepare us enough for reality, as in stressful moments and without previous experience in a particular situation, one might feel distressed and unable to react straight away. Anyway, I feel that this was a very good experience, as it helped me to realise that I needed to gain self confidence, and that the well being of a patient might depend on it.

I feel that I did not play any role in caring for Mrs. Smith in this situation, and that this was all due to my lack of confidence. Next time a situation like this happens, I will know what to do, and thinking back, I realise that I could have played a more active role in this situation, such as reassuring the lady, and help to calm her down. However, due to my inexperience, I thought that being just quiet at that moment it would be a help, because I thought that I would confuse the lady more, as she did not knew me. With this I have learnt that when a patient is in distress, will be grateful for any kind of help, and that if one feel without confidence, this will be passed to the patient, and he might become more distressed, worsening the situation.

To conclude, I realise now that I have to work on my self confidence, and improve my communication skills, so the patients will be able to trust me and follow my instructions, in case I am having an active role in a situation similar to this one.