The Ward

Disclaimer: Although I am currently serving with Mercy Ships, everything communicated here strictly reflects my personal opinions and is neither reviewed nor endorsed by Mercy Ships. Opinions, conclusions and other information expressed here do not necessarily reflect the views of Mercy Ships.

I feel like I have not posted to my blog in a long time. In reality this is true. One of the reasons for this is I have finally fallen into a routine here on the ship. There are the days I work, followed by my days off, and finishing with all of the activities I like doing on and off the ship. A common question I was asked here on the ship, up until my month anniversary, was how was I settling in to ship life and Mercy Ships? The answer has always been good! I feel like I have found my niche relatively easily and I have made quite a few new friends. Ship life is funny because there truly is nothing quite like it. There are people from thirty five nations living on a single ship in the Congo. Everyday dozens and dozens of local workers walk up the gangway to work with the international crew in every area of the ship. I am amazed at how well everything works and the level of excellence each department takes in performing their duties.

You may be asking what a typical work day looks like for me aboard the ship. Well, you are in luck! I have it all right here for you. The nursing department in the hospital works in eight hour shifts: Day (7am-3:30pm), Evening (2pm-10:30pm), and Night (10:00pm-7:30am). Each shift has its pros and cons, but I actually like working all three shifts here. There are some which I prefer, but none which I dread. 

Before we start a shift we always open with prayer. It’s very comforting and encouraging. We then do report, or handover as it is called here. This is just a time to tell the oncoming nurses about the patients they will be receiving. Then the race begins. We find all of the charts and begin to right down meds each patient will receive. Most patients receive the same medications: vitamins and nutritional supplements. We have a lot of plastic surgery patients so they need to stay hydrated and receive boosts of nutrients so their grafts will heal in the most optimal way. After this we wake the patients and start doing vitals. The patients are all relatively healthy except for what they came in for. We had patients who were in and out the ward in three to four days when we had the thyroid doctor come in to do a lot of goiter removals. We fill our time by playing games and making crafts. Nurses have to be creative to fill the time because there are lots of little children to entertain. We will typically see our patients who are going to the operating room first. The patients are eating breakfast by now and we are getting settled into a rhythm. Around ten o’clock or so the chaplaincy department comes in with the large bongo drums and they play worship songs in French and Lingala. We have a lot of fun clapping, dancing, and singing. They end with prayer for all of the patients. Lunch time rolls around and we are rotating out nurses for breaks. We come back to finish our charting and then it is two o’clock which means the next shift is coming on. Report is given and something very unique happens. From 2:30 to 3:30 all the patients who are able to go up to Deck 7, which is an open area on the ship where patients can get out and breathe some fresh air. The day nurses take all of the patients up there while the evening shift nurses stay back to get their paper work in order. I enjoy going up to Deck 7. We have fun. The kids love rolling around in the wagons or riding the big wheels. One day we had a giant dance party.

Back on the wards, evening shift has begun. While Deck 7 patients are away, the new admissions come onto the ship and down into the wards. When a specialty doctor is onboard, we will have a lot of the same types of patients come in. It’s amazing to see all of the different forms a single disease will take. We settle the new arrivals into their beds and start with introductions. Bonjour Mama/Papa! It works wonders. We follow a similar suit as with day shift. Pass any medications out, do vital signs, and do our assessments. Sometimes all of your patients are up to Deck 7 so there really is not much to do until they come back. There is a short window of time to get some stuff done once they come back before dinner arrives. Then the nurses rotate out for dinner. Evenings are very relaxed and filled with whatever games or crafts we do with the patients. We share a lot of laughs even though we do not speak the same language as they do. The language barrier has not really affected me. I can call one of the day crew over to help me translate what I need translated. Most other times I use hand motions to get across what I am trying to say. Charades is an ongoing game we play and we have a lot fun with it. The new arrivals are educated on the ward about what to do, how to use a bathroom, where to wash their hands, and the type of surgery they will be having the next day. Then sometime in the evening, the doctors will round on all of the patients. I find this very impressive. The doctor, surgeon, and the anesthesiologist round on the patients they will be seeing in the morning to discuss what surgery will be done and how it will happen. Phenomenal! Now it is time for bed. Sometimes at bedtime the day crew workers will lead the patients in some songs of worship. The next shift is about to arrive and we need to make our final touches on patients, medications, vitals, charting, and preparing the ward for bed. Preparing the ward for bed usually means turning out the main lights and hanging curtains to block any light coming from the nurses’ station. 

Night shift workers are typically fewer than the other two shifts. We do our routine of prayer and handover. Most of the time all of the patients sleep through the whole night which is good for their health and healing

. Once everyone is asleep, chart checks and narcotics checks are performed. If a patient wakes in the middle of the night in pain, then medications can be given. Nights are normally pretty quiet. Morning comes and it’s time to prepare the new patients who are going to surgery. This usually means a shower and one last drink of water. We then pass any six o’clock medications and then wait for the day shift to arrive.

Life on the wards has its challenges, but it also has plenty of rewards too. I always love seeing patients progress in their recovery and eventually move on to the Hope Center or home. Nursing is completely different here than back in the states. I actually enjoy going to work. I enjoy visiting former patients living at the Hope Center. I love playing with kids. Things back home get lost in the business of work and the never-ending call light race. Expectations are set very high and the reward of a job well done is short lived. I would say that 80% of the time I would never want to visit my patients outside of work and never at their homes or where they were transferred to. Life is different back home. Is it a good different or a bad different? I don’t know. This discussion of weighing the good versus the bad can go on all day. I guess I will end with this: I like what I do at home and I love what I do here. This adventure has been a nice vacation from the life and work I left behind. I am glad I am here and I will be happy to go home when the time comes. God has given me direction and I am excited to see where it will take me. My journey is not over yet and I have a long ways to go. Continue to pray for myself and the crew. We need it everyday.