Nurses have an important role to play in the operations of any hospital.
After all, without them, there wouldn’t be a hospital.
Cheryl Harrison is the nurse manager at the hospital. Her career began in 1984 as a continuing care aid (CCA). At the time, she was living in southwest Saskatchewan, and that’s where the jobs were in healthcare.
“I wasn’t able to go to school at that time, so I was a CCA when I was raising my children, and then after that I went back and became an RN (registered nurse),” said Harrison.
She obtained her nursing degree in 2004, and has been working in Estevan ever since.
“I love being a nurse to be able to support families and patients in their journey through healthcare,” said Harrison. “I think that’s really important, because it’s a stressful time for patients and families, and anything we can do to help that stress and help to improve their health is important.”
St. Joe’s has dozens of nurses on staff, working in its different departments.
“They’re essential for our departments. They’re highly skilled professionals who are critically thinking and assessing our patients. Especially with these challenging times. We’ve needed them, and we`ve needed them to be flexible to take on a lot of new roles,” said Harrison.
St. Joseph’s Hospital CEO Greg Hoffort said the nurses at the hospital are in many cases the faces of the facility. They can be found in the emergency room, the obstetrics unit, the operating room, the medical ward, the dialysis unit, long-term care and the addictions treatment centre.
Through some Saskatchewan Health Authority, they’re providing services in Estevan Area Home Care and Public Health.
“Right across the entire organization, we’re well-staffed with incredible nurses,” said Hoffort.
Many of them work in multiple departments. In a small community hospital like Estevan, some will be found in anywhere from one to four departments, and do a great job of it all.
“They provide the lion’s share of the patient care. Obviously there’s a great support network at St. Joseph’s Hospital with many of the support services, but a lot of the front line care is handled by the nurses.”
St. Joseph’s has a lot of young and eager nurses, mixed with many nurses who bring decades of experience, Hoffort said.
“It is a young workforce, probably younger than the average at the moment, but (you`ll find) anywhere from brand new to some 30-year plus members on the staff,” said Hoffort.
The nurses at St. Joseph’s have a lot of expertise. In addition to helping people with their emotional and mental health, nurses are able to critically think through the physical needs of patients.
They have also done an excellent job of adapting.
“It’s been a fairly challenging year for the staff, a lot of changes in policies and procedures, and also it’s a very stressful with changes in their knowledge of this pandemic. So we were presented with something that with very little knowledge, and as things have come up, it’s been rapidly changing, and we’ve had to keep up with the changes, but the nurses here have done an excellent job of taking it in stride,” said Harrison.
Hoffort added it has been a challenge 14 months for everyone, and St. Joe’s has had other services to provide. He noted that on April 30, the hospital was full, with multiple children being born that day, C-sections, activity in the operating room and the emergency, and more.
“It’s trying for everyone, but they’re handling it extremely well, they’re professional, they’re patient-first and they’re powering through,” said Hoffort.
Nursing has changed a lot over the years, Harrison said. Safety has improved a lot for workers. There are better lifts and transfers and medication safety, so that patients are safer in their care.
“It’s an excellent career choice, and I would encourage anyone to get into it. It’s a very diverse field, and there’s something for everybody in it,” said Harrison.
Nurses Week is from May 10-16, and St. Joseph’s Hospital will do what it can during the week to celebrate these valuable members of its staff.
