Today was my first day of clinical and oh my god I was a nervous wreck! It really did help ease my mind knowing that we weren't responsible for anyone today, thank god. We simply
followed a PSW around and got to see how the morning routines worked. I also enjoyed having a partner in crime J.E. to
share the experience. I did push myself to go beyond my comfort zone to help out
wherever I could, I even gave a gentleman a shave. I got to go down to help with breakfast
service, for the men from the dementia/Alzheimer’s floor which was really nice. We
didn’t really get to practice many skills other than socializing but it was really nice to experience these residence get to partake in something “normal”. It warms my
heart to see that the staff at the lodge really seem to care about the
residents and that they get to live as normal of a life as possible.
One thing I’m still really nervous about is keeping a
conversation going with the residents. I don’t tend to have a problem getting
through to them, I try to bring up something of interest like commenting on
the flowers in their room or something I read on their profile. A classmate was
having difficulty trying to get a blood pressure reading so after asking her if she wanted some
help, I stepped in to try and distract the resident. I brought up the fact
that she once sang on the radio with her husband, a fact I read from
her profile posted in the room. It really seemed to make her happy which in
turn made me feel great! It’s a wonderful feeling to bring joy to people even
if only for a moment. The thing I have difficulty with is keeping the
conversation going and not feeling awkward, especially if I have a hard time
understanding the resident.
Even though we get to work with a partner next week, I’m
still nervous! I hope we remember to do everything correctly, that I’m able to
converse with my resident in an effective way, and that we can find everything we
need without looking incompetent. Wish me luck!
