If I were in the hospital, I would want Geogeena by my side as a caregiver! As a trained RN from India, she is one of the most compassionate and kind professionals one could ask for. She is studying towards attaining her RN credentials in Canada, and in the meantime, has her LPN license and works as a Care Aid in a long term care home. One of her main assignments is to be a companion to two individuals suffering with Alzheimer’s and Schizophrenia. How she describes her work with these people and the affection she has towards them is quite remarkable. She is extremely patient and caring towards them, not only taking care of their physical needs, but also their emotional and social needs as well. She considers them family and has built a strong relationship with them.
It is clearly evident that in Georgeena’s profession, one of the primary characteristics is to be compassionate, and she is excellent at this! In fact, she admits that at times she can be too compassionate, and her emotions can overwhelm her. She feels great affection for her clients, yet also can feel tremendous grief and loss. She is working on learning to moderate this, and tries strategies for removing herself emotionally when it is difficult.
A second key element that Georgeena needs to possess in her field, is that of effective communication. English is her second language, and in Canada, she has to work very hard on a daily basis to ensure that she is listening carefully in all situations, checking her understanding, and responding appropriately. She is doing a very good job! In the workplace, she needs to communicate quickly and efficiently with doctors and nurses, but also thoughtfully and compassionately with patients and family members. She recognizes the need for different types of communication in various situations and can adapt easily. One thing Georgeena is working on in her communication is to be more organized in her her thinking so that she can communicate with succinct clarity. However, she is very easy to talk with, very reassuring, and personable. It is hard not to get to know her quickly and find lots to talk about!
A final area of importance for Georgeena is having strong morals and ethics. Though she struggles with reading policy manuals and articles on nursing codes of conduct and ethics, she is very committed to doing what is right and maintaining the dignity and humanity of the people she works with. A challenge for her has been around the issue of euthanasia as it pertains to one of the clients she sees on a daily basis. Doctors recommend compassionate euthanasia, but Georgeena sees the value of the individual and disagrees that the patient’s life is not worth maintaining. In her role as a care aid, she does not have the freedom to discuss this with the family, but finds it very troubling that this is an option that is presented. Georgeena has a very strong sense of always doing what is right for the patient and honouring God in the process.
Georgeena’s long term goals are to attain her RN credentials so that she can work in Canada as a nurse, and to apply for her permanent residency. She is in the process of waiting for her new husband to immigrate to Canada so is working very hard on a student visa to do all the upgrading required. In the meantime, she is very active in her community and has connected with the South Indian community group and provides leadership to cultural events and works with children teaching music and dance. Once her husband arrives and she has received her Canadian RN, she hopes to settle outside the city and raise a family. She is very determined and hard working, and will succeed at whatever she works towards!