Writing about Medicine

In my experience, nursing assistants are taken for granted the work that they do. Many people are disturbed by the duties and requirements of the job itself and it takes a certain type of person to care for a person in the way we do. I work in a memory care unit involving patients with dementia, Alzheimer’s, and Parkinson’s disease. Through my experience with these individuals, I learned a lot about their conditions but also life itself. I noticed that despite them not knowing who you are each day, they subconsciously know which staff properly and adequately cares for them. Their attitude and body language are large attribute on how they feel about you because in some cases their communication skills struggle due to their illness. In watching their body language and attitude, it also helped me in other aspects of life when interacting and communicating with others. Working in memory care is extremely sad at times  because you see the decline, watching as their memory fades, and seeing the impact and tole it takes on their families and loved ones. However, these residents are resilient, some of the best story tellers, and almost always welcoming to new faces (although most faces new or old seem new).  In spending time with my residents also sparked an interest in neuroscience and is why I am obtaining a minor in neuroscience. The brain and how memory works fascinates me and my residents are the ones who attribute to wanting to study the field and learn more about their condition and learn better ways to care for them. Nursing assistant may do the dirty work that no one wants to do, however we also are close and personal in a way with individuals that no one will obtain unless in our shoes. 

When I think about the future and what it has in store for me, I often end up thinking about my past and how it lead me to where I am. From the age of six, it was no longer just my parents and I. My mother started an in home daycare and over the years my three siblings were born. In having three younger siblings and helping with the daycare, I found a passion for helping and caring for others, but specifically children. It became second nature to me to care for others and help others in need. As I got older and the farther I got into school the more I fell in love with science, which over time lead to the interest in health care where I could combine my love for science and my passion for caring for others. In high school, I obtained my certified nursing assistant license during my junior year and started my path in working in health care. That was four years ago and still I am astonished with my joy in the profession and how everything I was passionate about intersected into one direction. My first job as a nursing assistant was sadly not with children but instead with memory care patients in a long term care facility. In working with them I learned so much about my profession, health care, and also about life. However, my intended path does not stop as a nursing assistant, I strive to work in pediatrics as a physician to continue my love for education and science as well as my desire to care and work with children. In thinking about the road I am headed down sometimes it is good to stop and think about the road that got me here. 

A photo taken on my way home from work one morning.

Hello! My name is Caroline Sampson and I am a student at the University of Mary Washington. I currently study biochemistry and neuroscience. This semester I am participating in undergraduate research looking at the fluorescence of certain drugs in cells. I am also taking genetics, writing about medicine, fictions of disability, and biological psychology. I am most excited for biological psychology.