Why is the site called Medical Warriors 2020?
Charlotte Jones
The year of 2020 is the year the nurse became recognized for their value in the healthcare community. The truth is that nurses are warriors and battle the unknown all the time. The Coronavirus is the biggest unknown to date. The virus has challenged a community that is typically prepared. Being in a profession in which you now begin to feel helpless despite the “armor” is not easy to face. The inner conflict must not take away the fact you are a Medical Warrior!
In spite of the unknown, nurses did what nurses were trained to do. Take care of their patients during a medical crisis. The ability to focus on nursing interventions has played a minor role. The role of nurses is evolving during this crisis. The preparation from school helped, but nothing could prepare the healthcare world for what came next.
Due to this pandemic many of your fellow nurses are falling victim to Trauma and/or Stress Disorders, including Compassion Fatigue and Burnout Syndrome. The concern is that not every nurse will get the education and fall victim with no intervention. The concern is not just the disorders themselves, but the short-term and long-term effects. You wonder how someone could be unaware of the signs and symptoms? When a person is living in a state of fight or flight, they are not paying attention, until they no longer have a choice.
The goal is to educate as many nurses as possible regarding the disorders. Why? The more that are aware of what the signs and symptoms are the more proactive they can be for themselves and their fellow nurses. With proactivity nurses will become supportive of their fellow nursing professionals. A profession believed to be compassionate is now being asked to demonstrate that starting with themselves. The time has come to challenge the previous traditions which include eating the young.
Nurses, you cannot afford to lose a fellow nurse. Your fellow nurses need your support and vice versa. Be the nurse you know you are supposed to be. Take care of your needs first. Every good nurse knows that the caregiver usually succumbs to illness sooner than the patient. The patient receives all your energy. Become your own patient first. Let the people around you always surround you with kindness, authenticity, and support.
By the way, there comes a time when you will benefit from removing your armor.