Posts by Tag

Tag: nursing

10,000 Lives in 87 Years

Posted by Amanda Nichols

John is among the strongest human beings I know. Not in the physical sense, mind you, but in terms of will. If he wants it, if he needs it, if he thinks it's a good idea, then by God, this former pro boxer and World War II vet will bend the Earth and Time itself to make it happen.

That's why yesterday was so hard. I saw the strongest person I know in the frailest state, a man who is seen as a gigantic fall risk in the hospital, waiting to see what cards fate will deal him this time around. That's not say that he isn't still the same person; even with the limitations placed in front of him, he still wants to move the Earth and Time to make everything right again. If that means, in his mind, taking out his own catheter, than that's what he has to do. So he did it. If that means stating he'll consent to one surgery, but not two, that's what he'll do. So he did it.

His mind and insight is the same as it always has been. He declared, with deep conviction, while the nurse was getti ... more »

Posted: January 19, 2009 1:49 pm | 0 comments
Tags: family, history, nursing, reflection

Jumping Through Hoops, Walking On Eggshells: An updated look at the experiences of student nurses with disabilities

Posted by Amanda Nichols

10 years ago, a study with the title mentioned above was published to little fanfare in a few nursing journals. It chronicled the situations of a specific group of student nurses with various types of disabilities, and the challenges that they faced while in school. The title comes from their collected feeling that they were "jumping through hoops" with regards to school policies and paperwork, often to the detriment of their schoolwork, and "walking on eggshells" in their clinical rotations, knowing that the would be judged far more harshly should they make a mistake than their non-disabled peers.

In some cases, those same peers made degrading comments to these students, saying that they were "taking slots away from those of us who aren't disabled."

That was 10 years ago, though. Surely we've come far from the stereotype of the young, healthy nurse?

Sadly, that is not the case. Professors refer to their students as being "young and healthy," despite the inclusion of much-older a ... more »

Posted: March 13, 2009 5:48 pm | 0 comments
Tags: ADA, disabilities, nursing