KUCHING: In the darkness of the night, while everyone is sleeping, many nurses are still wide awake and working.
Flitting from one bed to another, these unsung heroes keep on checking and monitoring patients to ensure that nothing is amiss.
Whenever patients are in pain in a hospital ward, a nurse will be the first to attend to them.
However, the apparent shortage of nurses seems to be profound in the public healthcare, especially in Sarawak.
According to the Health Ministry, Malaysia has yet to meet the nurse-to-patient ratio of 1:200 as suggested by the World Health Organisation.
With the nation’s current ratio of one nurse per 300 patients, the shortfall has made the jobs of the nurses harder and may trigger burnout and stress.
A 29-year-old female nurse working at Sarawak General Hospital said giving better pay for overtime did not guarantee her well-being.
“Of course, we will receive high wages if we do OT (overtime),” said the pregnant lady who wanted to be known as Nani.
Nani said she often skipped family gatherings and getaways because of work commitments.
“I have to negotiate with my family when they come up with plans for vacations,” she told New Sarawak Tribune at Sarawak General Hospital recently.
She also said despite government regulations, nurses were still expected to clock in more hours than stipulated.
Nani said she had to work about 16 hours a day.
“I have difficulty waking up on some days. The long hours can exhaust you physically, mentally and emotionally,” she said.
She revealed that the heavy workload had led a few of her colleagues to suffer mental breakdown.
“Some of my colleagues have lost their appetite to eat. It is normal for a nurse not to have a proper lunch break.
“We often eat at six in the morning and later around 7 o’clock in evening,” she said, adding that working double shifts was exhausting.
A male nurse, who wanted to remain anonymous, said there was a need for the government healthcare to recruit more nurses in order to address the shortages.
“As nursing care is a 24-hour service, I believe government should hire more nurses to ensure adequate nursing staff on duty.
“The heavy workload and inadequate staff will affect the quality of patient care adversely,” he said.
Jambi, a 61-year-old retired from Miri, pointed out that it was important for nurses to control their emotions when handling grumpy patients.
“It is undeniable that a nurse needs to be compassionate.
“I would advise for those who want to take up nursing to maintain highly professional friendships with their patients for healthy communication,” she added
Jambi, who had been a nurse for 37 years, was grateful to be able to help people who were in need.
“Despite the toughness of the job, I was satisfied with it. I’ve learnt many things including how to remain cool. Patience is of the utmost importance when you are a nurse,” she added.
