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Saturday, October 22, 2011

lady with the lamp

Which is the most noble profession in the world  ?  Is it a doctors job ?  Or is it a teachers  job ?    Though these  will come  to mind  when we think about the  noble professions,  one of the  most noble professions in the world is nursing  .  Not  only  it  is  a job  where  you do good  to the  sick and suffering  it is more noble  than a doctors or  teachers  job  because  nurses  work under  more stressful conditions .
                                                           Think about the following  scenario . A patient  is admitted with  severe   burns  in the body  .  The  doctor  sees  it  ,  prescribes  the  medication  and  then comes  into the scene again when the patient complains  of further pain or during the  next "rounds  "  .  But  the nurse  who is given the  instructions  is with the  patient  in the same ward seeing the  suffering  and  applying medication or consoling  him/her  .  And at least  in many parts  of india they  are  grossly underpaid considering the  important work they do . 
                                      In addition to all  this  a relatively  new phenomenon i  have observed  is  some  patients  who  misbehave  with them by  verbally  abusing  them .  Also  though  they  do  a great job  the  public  and  many ( not all)  doctors  consider  them  as  supporting  actors  in the  medical team  .  This is unfortunate as unlike in the movies  these supporting actors have a critical role  in the recovery of the  patient  .  Just think what would happen if the nurse  doesnt give  the  lifesaving injections at the  correct interval or dont monitor the bloodpressure after a heart attack  ? 

Modern medicine and nursing has progressed so much since the days of Florence nightingale who  tended to the wounded during the Crimean war .  Nowadays there are  specialities like critical care nursing etc where their  role  is  of great importance  .  But are we  giving the importance  which they deserve  ? 

Today  i was very saddened to know the demise  of a nurse in her twenties who  apparently  committed suicide due to  work pressure  in mumbai . Allegedly   the  authorities  had  kept  her  certificates  and was pressurising her  .  In addition to her stressful job this was too much for her and at  the  tender  age of 22 she  apparently took her  life  .  As of the time of this writing many of nurses in mumbai are on strike and some of their  demands are  so basic  like  the authorities should not  hold their certificates , give them experience certificate  for work done etc  . Apparently  the ladies with the lamp  are denied certificates of experience if  they dont complete minimum 2 years of work  .and their basic  qualification certificates are kept  with the administration (like bail  )

                                                                 It  is high  time  that  we take  care  of  this section of the  medical profession , for when anyone is admitted  in a hospital it is  their smile ,kindness and treatment  which  gives the patient  hope and ultimately recovery .  Or at the very least  let  us not mistreat them so bad that  some  of them end their  lives prematurely

Dr Haroon H Marikar

1 comment:

  1. akhil.k.s {brother of nibu rahim and febin itha}October 22, 2011 at 8:10 AM

    yes.. u r correct brother... i hope u know tat in delhi they work about 12 hrs after tat they should attend surgeries,operation and also want to work to improve their skills...but no one knows the risk and hidden factor behind as nurse is the only person who is with as till we leave hospital and if nurse is having no rest and no sleep she will be at high tension and pressure which she can mistake in the medicine which she give and lead to major problems..and even the nurses in ICU are given work load and resulting in score boards {hope u get}..y 2 take eg from delhi or mumbai, just go to jubile mission hospital in thrissur , kerala...which is one of the best hospital..and c in ICU for snake poison and in heart dept... not only nurse but also some surgeons having this problem thats why we can c knifes and other surgical equipment in human body after surgery {check in you tube}... i appriciate ur positive thinking...but in this world no one like to think,and even if think they wont act and even if they act they dont b success due to bribe and corruption. India is developed but Indians are not...

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