There I was, 7-year-old Leah, covered in red nail polish and toilet paper. I will never forget the moment my parents walked in on my three sisters and I playing “doctor.” They walked in on a full-fledged World War I scene complete with battle-worn stuffed animals, makeshift nursing costumes and my oldest sister standing over my nail polish soaked leg ready to “amputate” and “cauterize” my “wound.” You might say we had wild imaginations. My sisters and I were the queens of playing house, but not your typical suburban role-play. We played town with business owners, public service officials and lawyers; historical dramas with power hierarchies and politics; and even surgery, complete with doctors, patients, and a good amount of red lipstick or nail polish.
From a young age, I was fascinated with the human body. Whenever one of us turned up with a cut or bruise, my mom, a pediatric nurse, would tell me about the busted capillaries or layers of skin (weird, I know). Although I eventually decided that entering the medical field was not for me, I still have a vested interest in what life is like for my mom as a nurse. On our weekly calls, we talk about her experiences at the hospital or any interesting cases she’s had that week. But recently, our calls are filled with the weight of COVID. For professionals and students outside the medical profession, we are able to compartmentalize and tune out COVID as best we can, but nurses and doctors are confronted with the reality of the pandemic every day. This is no different with nursing students here at Union.
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Megan Calhoun, senior nursing major, wanted to be a nurse most of her life. Her late mother spent a large amount of time in the hospital, and Calhoun noticed how influential the nurses were on her mother’s day-to-day experience. Calhoun has a naturally caring spirit, and the face-to-face interaction offered by nursing is a perfect fit.
“Nursing has so much more care with patients. It’s not just the medical side, but also the spiritual and the mental, and trying to encompass all the things that make up a person’s health. Delivering that care is what makes nursing so special,’ said Calhoun.
Union’s professors and staff have done a wonderful job keeping nursing students and patients safe throughout this time while providing expert-level education. During the beginning months of the pandemic, nursing students were unable to participate in an in-person clinical experience. Instead, students attended clinicals on zoom, working through hypothetical scenarios and critical thinking questions. Calhoun noted that though these exercises were beneficial, they could not replace an in-person experience.
“As a nursing student, you want to be there in the hospital on the front-lines, and it was hard being kept from that,” said Calhoun.
She remembers being crushed that she would not be able to experience certain rotations, such as the NICU or Emergency Room. For those graduating in May unsure of which specialty they’re drawn to, this can be disappointing and nerve-wracking.
Starting last fall, nursing students were able to gain experience in-person at medical facilities. When in hospitals, students wear masks and face shields and are kept away from COVID patients and quarantine rooms.
Rachel Faulks, junior nursing major, commented, “At first, it was a little bit scary. Right now, we know a lot more than we did then. There were so many unknowns. Even now, there are still so many unknowns. All of us – students, nurses and doctors – are learning how to get through this.”
Faulks stared her first semester of nursing school (evidently the most challenging) during the throws of the pandemic. The rigor of nursing school is itself overwhelming at times, but the added weight of COVID creates an exceptional challenge for students. Both Calhoun and Faulks noted the isolation and distance between nurse and patient has been one of the most challenging aspects of the pandemic.
For many patients, being in the hospital is scary enough and COVID has caused many to be isolated without visitors. When it comes to personal contact between patient and staff, Faulks noted that the personal protective equipment makes even the warmest of interactions feel distant, especially for the elderly or those who cannot hear or see very well. Faulks remembered a heart-breaking interaction with an overwhelmed elderly patient who could not hear her or read her lips through the mask.
“The pandemic has made me realize just how important it is to see other people’s faces,” said Faulks.
Before COVID, one of Calhoun’s favorite aspects of serving patients was interacting and having personal time with their families. With a bright smile on her face, Calhoun recalled sitting in a Vietnam veteran’s room for 45 minutes while he shared his war stories. Although she was able to experience that moment with him because pandemic protocols prohibit visitors, she noted it was sad to think of him all alone in his room without anyone to share stories with.
In light of all she experienced, Calhoun said, “It makes me want to dig my heels in deeper. I’m not afraid of it.”
