Setbacks I have faced and how I overcame them
It is indeed a miracle and precious moment to cherish having the opportunity to tell a profound story about myself, and the hurdles I have overcome in life, which I have held in high esteem. Setbacks are normal in life and overcoming them is what makes life more meaningful. When I migrated to America, I faced so much hardship; I was uninsured and experiencing serious financial issues for the first six months. I was not able to gain employment since I was waiting to be issued a work permit to legally seek employment opportunities. I struggled to afford the basic needs such as food, clothing, and a place to live and I could not afford to buy personal hygiene items which led me to be distressed. I was lucky to find a roommate who told me not to worry about paying rent until I got a job. With this, I got some relief since the burden of paying rent was lifted off my chest.
Another challenge I faced was in communicating effectively in English. This affected me in one instance where I was having pain in my throat and had to visit the hospital. I struggled to communicate with the doctor due to my pain and also because my English was limited which made communication even harder. This prevented me from making a vital connection with the doctor and I was therefore not able to mention to him that I was allergic to sulfa. He prescribed to me some antibiotics that contained sulfa and after taking it for a day, I developed painful blisters on my body. My roommate attempted to take me back to the hospital but I refused since I did not want to be left alone in a hospital with no one by my side. I took Advil every six hours to aid with the inflammation that had resulted from the allergic reaction. The pain was overwhelming but after weeks of suffering, the blisters started to get better. I was thankful and glad to be alive and well once again. Through my personal experiences, I was able to develop an understanding that there is a link between income and health. Low-income communities are less likely to have health insurance. I am motivated to raise public and provider awareness of health disparities in health care when I become a physician.
I kept persevering and tried not to let my hardships get the better of me. Luckily I was able to get a work permit after 8 months. To ensure I secured employment, I took a Nursing Assistant training and got my first job in a hospital. I quickly went on to become a registered nurse and worked in the intensive care unit, where I worked with a team of doctors and participated in some life-changing decisions made for the patients. One particular case I remember fondly was that of a 70-year old male patient, who was in a coma because he had a stroke. He needed to be put on a ventilator due to damage to his brain. However, his wife and children refused and later he died peacefully while under our care. The most rewarding aspect for me was the compassionate care I was able to give when the patient was dying. I followed the physician’s order by administering a morphine drip to help alleviate pain. It was so meaningful to me because the patient died peacefully.
Due to the challenges I went through, I developed a spirit of tolerance and appreciation and above all the tendency to giving back to the community within my reach. I have been working as a nurse for 11-years. My experiences include critical care, telemetry, renal, respiratory, and surgery. As a Charge nurse, I use my knowledge of critical thinking process: assessment, analysis, planning, implementation, and evaluation. I have always been responsible and accountable for the quality of nursing care that I provide to all my patients. I have learned to never give up under any circumstances. What gave me the most hope and courage was that at least I had the opportunity to prove myself and change the conventional perception of disadvantaged refugees in America. I am proud of myself and what I have been able to achieve so far and I will keep pushing myself to achieve more success and excellence in my field.