LOVE IS WAR(M).

23

Laurice.

After I clocked in upon arriving at the hospital, I immediately proceeded to the nurse's station to receive a report from the night shift nurse about her patients last night who will become my patients today. I went straight to the medical room after getting the report about my patients so I could finally begin my morning rounds. It's going to be a long day once again since I'm a pediatric nurse with a 12-hour shift and 8 children will be under my care today. I'm hoping that this day is going to be smooth and well unlike yesterday.

I was carrying some medical stuff that I'll be needing to check on my first patient for today along with the child's information as I walked towards the patient's room. My patient is a girl age 10, who is clinically diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. According to the information that I got, her father has it too so it is likely that she inherited the disease from her father.

A smile immediately formed on my lips as I entered the room of my patient. She has blonde wavy hair, blue eyes, and pale skin. She looks like she's a sweet child, her cheeks has freckles that only made her look more adorable. Tama nga ang report na nareceive ko tungkol sa batang ito, mukhang hindi nga talaga siya isang pasaway na bata. Mukhang madali siyang pakiusapan.

"Hi, my name is Laurice, and I will be your registered nurse for today." Pakilala ko sa bata at nakangiting lumapit ako sa kaniya habang inilalagay ang mga kagamitang dala ko sa side table kung saan siya nakahiga. Tinitigan muna niya ako ng ilang segundo bago niya naisipang magsalita, mukhang inabsorb niya muna ang impormasyong narinig niya.

"Oh..." Maikli namang sagot ng bata ngunit hindi nagtagal ay muli siyang nagsalita. "Thank you for checking on me even if we're not related to each other, nurse Laurice. People like you are the best!" Nakangiti na siya ngayon, mukhang masaya dahil sa nalaman niyang nandito ako para alagaan siya kahit na hindi kami magkaano-ano.

Napaisip ako sa sinabi niya. In my 6 years of being in the field, I've already encountered different patients with different families. As a pediatric nurse, there's more exposure to the family of our patients compared to an adult nurse. Some are grateful for us keeping an eye on their children, but for some, they see us as someone being paid to watch on their children so some are unavoidably ungrateful. Yes, it is our job and we're getting paid for what we do but it is our passion that keeps us moving to take care of the vulnerable.

Siguro hindi na maiiwasan ang mga taong sarado ang utak lalo na kapag sa hospital ka nagtatrabaho. I decided to be a pediatric nurse so I wouldn't have to deal with whiney adults but it turns out, mas exposed pa pala ako sa kanila sa propesyong ito. Minsan, minamaliit nalang kami lalo na pag medyo narrow-minded ang parents or gurdian ng bata. One time, I had a patient and her guardian was her grandmother. I was tasked to get a blood sample from the patient but her grandmother didn't let me because according to her, only a doctor could perform that such task. Nag-eskandalo pa ang matanda dahilan para magkaroon ng code gray sa hospital.

My patience was definitely tested when I finally achieved my dream. Hindi lang dahil sa mga taong mahirap pakisamahan kundi sa dami rin ng mga gawain kaya labis nalang ang inis ko sa mga taong hindi naaappreciate ang mga nurse, na akala nila ang trabaho namin ay maging assistant lang ng doctor, but being a nurse is more than that. May mga times nga na papasok ako kinabukasan ng walang sapat na pahinga, nakakaburnout. Kaya nakakataba talaga ng pusong makatanggap ng pasasalamat dahil sa ginagawa namin, katulad ng sinabi ng batang si Rebecca.

Umabot na ako sa puntong napaisip ko kung ito ba talaga ang pangarap ko, but as time passes by, I got used to it. I knew being a pediatric nurse is what I really want because I'm willing to give my all in this job, kahit maubos ako. It's worth all the effort when you know you can give your patients a glimpse of hope, especially children who have no choice but to fight a battle they never dreamed of having at a young age.