Turn the Page 2: My Destiny

Chapter 6

The nun let out a long sigh after she left June's room. The nurses at the station turned their heads towards her. "She's finally sleeping," she informed them. Though she was one of the youngest out of everyone else that worked at the facility, all of them showed the utmost respect for her. They admired the patience and compassion she had for each of the patients that resided there no matter how difficult they can be.

"Ang galing mo talaga, sister." Kim, one of the younger nurses, grinned proudly at her.

"It wasn't me. It was the meds in her system," she had an honest look of disappointment.

Though everyone wore a mask due to the pandemic, Cora, one of the older nurses, was already familiar with the sentiments the nun showed in her eyes. She sighed. They've been through this before. "Sister," she began, "I know very well how you feel regarding the use of heavy medication or sedation sa mga pasyente as a form of calming them down—"

Before she could continue, the nun had already cut her off. "It's not calming them down, it's shutting them up by drugging them heavily enough that they have no choice but be put to sleep."

Cora didn't appreciate the nun's allegations. "Sister, with all due respect, we've trained our staff well enough to use sedation as our last resort sa pagpapakalma ng mga pasyente namin dito. If a patient was sedated, it's because they're so worked up and agitated that our manpower is just not enough to handle them safely and the patient could easily become too dangerous towards other patients, towards our staff, and even towards themselves."

Sophia already knew this, but she knew well enough how often sedation is used at the facility to control agitated patients like June. "How aggressive was June being?"

Cora tried not to get frustrated. "Very." She answered.

"Were you there?" Sophia wanted to make sure.

"Sister, of course I was there. I saw it." Cora claimed.

"Sino ba yung nurse na nag-handle kay June before she was sedated? Gusto ko silang makausap," the nun demanded.

Cora had no choice. Though the nuns that come in and out at the facility only stay and visit with the patients for a few hours, they automatically hold a type of authority the workers have to adhere to. As a result, she called Sam and Kim and told them to follow the nun.

"In trouble po ba kami, sister?" Kim asked nervously. She was ready to tell her that it was Cora who instructed another nurse to sedate June.

"You're not in trouble. Gusto ko lang kayo makausap para malaman kung ano yung nangyari that led to June's sedation," the nun tried to sound assuring.

"With all due respect po, sister, eto po eh galing lang naman po sa sarili kong observation dito sa facility. Hindi ko po kasi masisi sila ma'am Cora kung hindi po nila maiwasang gamitan ng pampa-tulog si Mrs. Torres. Madalas po kasi syang mag-wala, at madalas po sa tuwing nawawalan po sya ng control sa sarili nya, nagiging bayolente po sya. Kulang din po tayo sa staff para i-handle yung mga may case ng katulad po kay Mrs. Torres. Nasa limit naman po tayo ng ratio ng nurse to patient pero malala po talaga si Mrs. Torres kapag po sinusumpong at hindi makuha ang gusto nya," Kim explained.

"I've never seen June get violent," the nun beg to differ.

"Eh opo. Madalas po kasi pag nagpupunta kayo dito nabigyan na ho ng gamot si Mrs. Torres kaya kumakalma na po sya," Sam reasoned this time.

The nun looked at the two and nodded. She motioned for them to follow her back to the nurse's station. There, she spoke to the nurses that were present. "I'm going to stay here for the night. I'll help out wherever I can. I'm not playing favorites, but I'm going to pay closer attention to June. Baka matulungan ko kayong mag-hanap ng ibang paraan na i-handle sya without heavily medicating her."