Reflections
Coming Clean : How a Bed Bath Opened My Eyes
By Bobbie Borgman
Bobbie Borgman is a senior nursing student at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville , Edwardsville , IL . She works as a student nurse technician at Barnes-Jewish in St . Louis , MO
When you are working a job as a tech it can
be easy to fall into the trap of feeling underappreciated and taken advantage of . After all , the majority of the day is spent bathing patients , cleaning up after an incontinence episode , and changing bedsheets . While there are some ‘ important ’ tasks such as taking vital signs , drawing blood , and assisting with codes , the grunt work can wear down your desire to be a true caretaker for your patients .
I became a student nurse technician during my senior year of college as a way to gain some experience in the field before going off to be an RN all on my own . During that time , I did my fair share of complaining about having to give a patient a bed bath or needing to go clean someone up after they defecated in their bed – again . However , there were moments sprinkled throughout that remind me why I wanted to go into this field in the first place – moments that to others may seem like more grunt work , but to my patient they meant more than the medications , or the dressing changes ever could .
I distinctly remember coming in to work night shift one evening , worn out from lack of sleep , but ready to see what the night would hold . I had an exam coming up and I planned on getting some studying done while my patients were all dozing in their rooms . I made my first set of rounds , introducing myself and taking vital signs , and was particularly flustered by one patient who had been sitting stark naked and eating when I entered her room . She seemed annoyed by my interruption , holding a gown over herself while reluctantly allowing me to get my job done , and I was quick to finish up and get out of her room , content to avoid her at all costs .
As the next few hours went on the other tech and I found out that one of us would need to be pulled to be a sitter after 11 pm , and with my strange patient and my studying needs on my mind I volunteered to do the job , however , I was not let off quite so easily . While I was able to be the sitter for the evening , the charge nurse asked that I do my 11 pm rounds before taking over . When the time came , I was eager to get my rounds over with and begin my study session while observing the dementia patient who needed a more watchful eye . I hurried through the first two sets of vital signs , ensuring that the two gentlemen did not need anything else , and went on to visit the room with the strange naked lady .
When I approached the patient , she was lying in bed next to her beeping IV pump and she asked for help to sit up , complaining that she was irritated and that she could not sleep . She kept repeating herself as I was trying to convince her to let me take her blood pressure , and eventually I conceded and went to grab her nurse so he could switch out her IV medications before again attempting to get her vital signs . She allowed me to do my job as we waited for him to come back , apologizing and continuing to tell me about her irritation at not being able to sleep . I dutifully asked if there was anything I could do to help , and she scolded me , telling me not to offer if I did not have any solutions . Aggravated , I continued to finish up my work as the nurse returned , and as I was completing my charting she asked me if she could get a bath , stating that that may make her feel better .
Admittedly , giving a bed bath at 11 o ’ clock at night was the last thing I wanted to do . We usually got baths done during day shift and that was a perk that I truly appreciated about working nights . However , knowing that I would just be sitting in a dark room for the remainder of the night , I agreed to take the extra time to clean her up , rather than hurriedly finishing up my tasks and attempting to push it off onto someone else . I asked the nurse to run and grab the supplies I needed while I finished charting and asked her if she also wanted to use one of the shower caps to clean her hair . She
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