Work Experience: What I learned

My week of work experience for me was enjoyable, educational and a complete eye opener. I was in the Argyles care home for a week (see previous post) and I experienced so much which was totally alien to me.

I frequently assist at Newbury Mencap, a charitable organisation which provides a number of services for children with disabilities. Many children have communication problems and special dietary and other needs. As a result I thought I was pretty prepared to deal with almost anything this care home could throw at me – I couldn’t have been more wrong.

I had chosen a care home for a week’s work experience because with both pairs of my grandparents being fit and well, I had no idea what old age could do to someone. I know that the UK has an aging population so if I became a doctor the chances of me having to deal with elderly patients would be quite high, and it would be good to get some experience in this area.

On the first day I was doing room visits. James and I would knock, enter, and introduce ourselves, before asking how the resident was, and talking to them about upcoming events that they were able to participate in. Outside each room, James usually gave me a bit of background on each resident – their likes, dislikes, etc. Betty (that’s what I’m calling her for the purposes of this post) was described as “a lovely lady”, but to me this seemed to be pretty standard.

We went in, introduced ourselves and asked how she was – so far so good. However, when the conversation continued she changed in a millisecond from smiling and happy to an angry tirade of complaints. This sudden change really shocked and scared me a little – it was how I’d imagined someone with dual personalities might act. She continued her rant until we left, screaming about how she was “fed up with being pushed around here, shoved over there, never had any say in anything” and how she was “sick of it up to her back teeth, I might as well be dead!”.

I was so thrown by the change and the torrent of angry words that when I finished my day there (no other hitches or problems) I went home and seriously considered whether medicine was the right career path for me. After a lot of thought, both that night and throughout the week I decided that it definitely still was.

While Betty’s anger shocked and distressed me the first time, I found that on subsequent occasions, when I knew that it might happen I was absolutely fine and actually managed to calm her down a little. I also found that she was having a bad day, as that first day was the worst tantrum I saw all week. I found it very interesting that if you spoke to a resident one day, they could happily communicate with you, but return the very next day, and you’d have trouble talking to them at all. I found this marked difference surprising, as sometimes the residents spoke in conversation and joined in, but on other days, you could ask them what they wanted for dinner and they would be unable to reply. I also realised that even a little preparation can mean that you’re prepared to deal with a lot else – other residents had issues and got upset, but a little understanding, and acting in a cool and calm manner can often resolve them

I later found out that the reason for the outburst was the nurse who’d just finished taking her to the toilet, and had come into the room behind us. I can also vouch for the fact that the nurses never forced her to do anything and she was given as many choices as were available, but still complained anyway.

Often being put in the care home could leave the residents with a negative view of life – “I might as well be dead!” being a prime example. However, the job of the activities manager is to keep the residents active and entertained, and I can honestly say Rosemary does a fantastic job.

I took part in the sing along afternoon which Rosemary had organised with a lady called Pam and her husband Brian. They sang and played guitar for the residents, and I could see as some of the least responsive and most negative residents came to life with the music. They all thoroughly enjoyed the music, many singing or tapping their feet, all with big smiles. This made me realise what holistic care meant. The lady who’d spent a while talking about the pain in her hip which even the pills she took couldn’t help was all of a sudden smiling and happy. It’s not just the physical symptoms that need treating, but the entire person needs to be reassured and made to feel comfortable.

The same was true of the residents when they went to visit the seaside. Memories of similar excursions from when they were young began to flow and I learned a lot about the group I was with. This was such a huge change in some of them that it made you smile just to see them.

I really enjoyed my days there, and I was very glad that they agreed to have me. I am planning to return in the future, but we’ll have to see how that turns out.