Lessons learned

Lessons learned

Lessons Learned DENISE O'BRIEN BSN, RN, CPAN, CAPA N 1943, M Y M O T H E R entered St M a r y ' s Hospital School of Nursing thanks to the Cadet Nurse...

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Lessons Learned DENISE O'BRIEN BSN, RN, CPAN, CAPA N 1943, M Y M O T H E R entered St M a r y ' s Hospital School of Nursing thanks to the Cadet Nurse Corps. Three years later, she earned her nursing diploma. In November 1946, she successfully completed her nursing board examination and became a registered nurse. She celebrates her 75th birthday this month and still retains her RN license. Growing up with a mother as a nurse leads to the inevitable question: Are you going to be a nurse when you grow up? I denied any desire to become a nurse for years; it wasn't until my senior year in high school that I finally made my decision. 1 was going to be an English teacher or a social worker but not a nurse. I could not bear the thought of being compared with my morn. Could 1 ever be as good a nurse as she'? I doubted i t - - s h e was my mother and nearly perfect! How could I even think I could be half as good a nurse as she! Twenty-nine years afler my mother received her diploma, I received my nursing degree and began my nursing career. Morn ended her career in the specialty of developmental disability. Even though her specialty was not perianesthesia nursing, we l~und common interests. Over the years, morn and I compared stories of being nurses, what it was like then and what is happening now. We talked about working with aides, physicians, and other nurses. We shared our happiest and saddest patient stories. Common threads are woven through all the stories. Not only did I learn from my mother's stories after I became a nurse, but I realized that I had learned many of these lessons over the years I was growing up. It was rare to see mom in her whites or at work, but what she believed and lived carried over into our home and our daily lives. The lessons my mother taught me follow.

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LESSONS LEARNED FROM MY MOTHER THE NURSE C a r i n g - - a t the heart of what we are and what we do. Morn cared about her family and her patients. Journal of PeriAnesthesia Nursing, Vo115, No 3 (June), 2000: pp 149 150

She cared about her coworkers and all with whom she came in contact. Caring is central to our being. T o l e r a n c e i a c c e p t i n g that others m a y be different from us but that they are worthy o f the best care we can offer. M o m always reflected a tolerance to others' appearances, ideas, and behaviors. R e s p e c t - - a l l people deserve respect. It is not possible to like everyone we meet or care for, but they are all worthy of respect as individuals, as people. This is a lesson that my children learned early in their lives. C o n s c i e n t i o u s I d e t a i l s are important, especially when someone is counting on you to take care of him or her. Mistakes can happen and will occur over the course of your career, and you must take responsibility for them. K i n d n e s s - - e v e r y act should be accomplished with kindness and no malice. There is no room in our lives for hurtful acts. H u m o r - - w i t h o u t humor, our lives are dull and nearly overwhelming. Humor, when it is not hurtful, brightens the day, lightens our burdens, and makes our hearts shine. Be the best you can b e - - M o r n expected my brother and I to always do our best. She told us we were capable and worthy. Anything less was not meeting our potential.

The ideas and opinions expressed in this editorial are those solely of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of ASPAN, the Journal, or the publisher. Denise O'Brien, BSN, RN, CPAN, CAPA, is an Educational Nurse Coordinator/Clinical Nurse IH in the PACU/ASU, University of Michigan Health System, Ann Arbo~ M1. Address correspondence to Denise O'Brien, BSN, RN, CPAN, CAPA, 8383 Geddes Rd, Ypsilanti, MI 48198-9404; e-mail address: [email protected] 9 2000 by American Society of PeriAnesthesia Nurses. 1089- 9472/00/1503-000 l $3.00/0 doi: 10.1053/jpan. 2000. 8580 149

15o M o m offered me other lessons throughout these years, and she continues to teach me. I have always tried to be the nurse my mother would want me to be--kind, caring, fun-loving, and tolerant. It's tough filling your mother's shoes, and I still have a

DENISE O ' B R I E N way to go before I fill my mom's. I will keep trying to be the best I can be as a nurse and a p e r s o n - that's the lesson morn taught best! Thank you and Happy 75th Birthday, M o m - Donna J. McLane Chapin, RN, BS.