Monday, 25 August 2014

Today the head nurse said she needed to talk to me and I instantly panicked--did I miss something (I have no problem reading French, but I can NOT read some of the doctors' handwriting!)?  Did I do something wrong?  Am I not working hard enough?  But what she actually wanted to ask me was if I would be willing to work full-time on the floor in the month of September to cover one of the nurses that's on maternity leave.  I was originally brought here to train the staff, but the majority of the issues I have witnessed thus far are due to lack of resources--I'm sure that with more discussion and collaboration there are many ways we can improve the unit, but in the meantime, I'm grateful for the opportunity to work as a peer with the other nurses and to continue to develop relationships.  I was both excited and nervous at the request--excited because they think my Creole is sufficient to be on my own after only six weeks(!), and nervous because the patient loads here are much heavier than what I'm used to in the states and I have to speak Creole and chart in French.  Then again, maybe it wasn't really a request, since my name was already on the schedule...ha!  I start next Monday.