Health care is filled with compassionate people. I don’t think you could do this job without compassion. It keeps you going on your hardest days, and brightens the good ones. I have seen so much compassion in my workplace, whether it’s been directed at patients or other staff.
I see it in my colleagues when they work with patients, giving them support and advice when they’re going through a range of tough emotions, helping them keep safe, and calming them when they get overwhelmed or lash out. I see them try to understand why a patient is feeling or acting a certain way. They don’t judge, they only want to help.
There have been two occasions when I have seen compassion in action that have really stuck with me. The first was when we had a patient who could be incredibly challenging to work with. One staff member in particular was always so good with him, and to him. Everyone who worked with him did their best, but there was something about the way she showed the care and compassion she had for him; she never failed to advocate for him. She is an example I look to when I think about compassion.
The other time was when my granny was sick, and we knew she didn’t have long left. I got upset about it at work, and I’ll never forget how my colleagues treated me; bringing me into the staff room, making me a cup of tea, and doing what they could to be a comfort. Their compassion will always stick with me. As will that of my manager, who was a great support at that time. She gave me a few days leave so I could be with granny, and I’ll always be grateful for that.
There are a few newly qualified nurses on my ward with me, and we show compassion for each other. We check-in with each other, and are always there for a little rant on the rough days. I don’t know where I’d be without them.
