Caring from the Heart - Celebrating International Nurses Day
“Caring from the heart, from my point of view, is about empathy,” says the Head of Aged Care, Angela Raguz. “It’s working with knowing and understanding every individual and thinking about what that person needs. It’s not always what we think is best; it’s often about listening and relating to what the other person wants.”
The Salvation Army Aged Care’s purpose is to promote a unique experience of choice, lifestyle and belonging for all people as they age through residential aged care centres, retirement villages, and in-home care. Some of these services are supported, overseen, and managed by nurses so, on International Nurses Day marked every year on 12 May, we asked our nurses what ‘caring from the heart’ means to them.
For Sachita, a Registered Nurse at Weeroona Aged Care Centre, she notes that caring from the heart means putting the resident first. “Caring from my heart is to provide the compassionate and empathetic person-centred care to residents with dignity and care,” she says. “It is to make them feel that their voice is heard, and we are there to listen to their concerns and needs.”
For the General Manager of Residential Services, Nicola Nolan, who is also a Registered Nurse, she explains what caring from the heart means to her: “It’s not just the physical things that a nurse can do, it’s making a connection with their emotional side; their social side, and also getting to know well the people that are important to them," she states. “It’s about finding out what’s important to the person that a nurse is caring for and bringing the team that you’re working with along that journey of understanding as well.”
Similarly, Clinical Care Coordinator at Pacific Lodge, Rashmita, highlights the importance of a nurse providing holistic care to residents. “It’s more than just physical care, it’s about proving emotional and personal care,” she says. “It’s being there for the residents, listening to their concerns, and sowing kindness and compassion.”
Rashmita highlights the importance of a nurse providing safety and comfort for residents moving into a new setting, such as a residential aged care centre. “Being in a new environment, away from their loved ones and listening to residents to make them feel more comfortable," she explains.
Sharon O’Neill a Senior Clinical Advisor in The Salvation Army’s Quality and Safeguarding team, also believes in the importance of person-centred care: “Caring from the heart means putting the person that we’re caring for at the centre of all our decisions,” she says. “And as nurses, we really need to just be thinking about that person holistically and making sure that we are listening to them emotionally, spiritually and clinically, to make sure we're doing everything they need.”
