Interested in studying nursing and midwifery? Learn more about the Bachelors of Nursing/Midwifery at UQ and prepare for life on the maternity ward and beyond.
“Hello… Can you open your eyes please… What’s your name? Do you know where you are?
My name’s is Lizzie, I’m the student nurse looking after you. How can I help?”
Welcome to the adrenaline packed, electrifying, exhausting and incredibly humbling world of Accident and Emergency. I’m one of two UQ final year Bachelor of Nursing/ Midwifery student’s fortunate enough to have the incredible opportunity to go on Exchange to the University of Manchester, and complete my final Nursing Undergraduate Placement in A+E at the Manchester Royal Infirmary.
I can’t believe in just under three weeks I’ll be finished my nursing degree! When I was little I always dreamt of being able to help people with my hands, my heart and my brain. I actually have come to feel so at home in the hospital - nursing has fit me like a glove. I love to learn, I’m a people person, but most of all I feel such a sense of satisfaction when I know I’ve made a difference. That’s why I’m excited, and proud to (almost) be a nurse.
I’ve been in the UK for 3 months now. Words can’t describe some of the things I have seen, how much I have grown personally and professionally, and how much I love it here – but I’ll give it my best.
A+E is a never-ending puzzle. In comes a person with a list of symptoms, and (in the time constraints of the National Health Service’s 4-hour max wait times) you assess, stabilise, gain a history, conduct tests, perform interventions, monitor for the impact of these interventions, and then either refer them to a specialty or (hopefully) send them home. The true skill comes in managing many patients simultaneously – yet still treating, valuing and respecting each as an individual.
While every shift is an adventure – here are some of my highlights:
In A+E when there is a really critical person about to come in we get pre-alerted by a call from the Ambulance service to a “Red Phone”. The Nurse in charge takes the call, and then alerts the department over the loud-speaker - “Red Standby, Adult Major Trauma – ETA 5mins”.
One of these “Red Standbys” was a motorbike vs car head on collision, resulting in fractures to the patient’s femur, hip, wrist, and back… I got to look after and stabilize the patient, and follow them through to the Orthopedic Trauma Operating Theatre. The surgeons and theatre nurses were so kind, they not only talked me through the 3 operations, but they even let me scrub in so I could stand right next to the surgeon as he used metal rods, plates and pins to reconstruct the patient’s broken bones.
I have been actively involved in eight cardiac arrests (one was on my first day – but that’s another story). I’ve helped wheel a patient down the hallway while they were actively receiving CPR, and get them to the “Cath-Lab” where under X-ray guidance surgeons were able to guide a wire up the patient’s femoral artery, and use a stent to reopen the diseased blood vessels of the heart, and save his life.
I have been blessed with a plethora of opportunities to learn – just over a week ago I traveled to Chorley to complete a simulation training day in “Out of Hospital Emergencies” with the Paramedics and Army Reserve. I’ve worked with an advanced practice nurse running a Community Clinic for Chronic Diseases, and have done home visits with a GP for the day – visiting some of the sickest home-bound patients.
Just yesterday I got to ride in an ambulance for the first time as we transferred a patient to a specialist hospital for neurosurgery. The patient was critical, so we traveled on “blue lights”. The paramedic crew were amazingly skilled, calm and good at balancing as we tore down the highway.
Manchester is a beautiful city to explore, and the rest of the UK is so close that I’ve being doing my best to see as much as can on my days off. So far I’ve day-tripped to the Lakes District, spent a weekend in Bath visiting the Roman baths and Stonehenge, seen some stunning castles in Wales, and travelled to Dublin for St. Patrick’s Day!
There are some exciting opportunities on the horizon - in my final week as a student nurse I’ll be attending a conference in London and on shift with the London Ambulance Service.
I have been so lucky to have worked as part of an incredibly supportive team and mentored by inspiring nurses and doctors. I won’t sugar coat it – I have seen some heartbreaking things (as is the nature of Accident and Emergency), but I wouldn’t change a thing. I’ve found my calling – caring for people when they are most vulnerable. Be that at the beginning (as a student midwife) or at the end (as a student nurse), it’s my privilege to love, support and provide dignity. Not as a healthcare professional, but as one human being caring for another human being.
I have learned there is never a situation in which a non-judgmental ear, a hand to hold, and kindness won’t help.
I’ve realised how precious every moment is.
If you have been blessed with a life, it is your duty to live it to the fullest.
Study at UQ
Find out more about the Bachelors of Nursing/Midwifery at UQ.