YOUNG VOICE
When Grandpa stopped smoking
The rice stalks had dewdrops that glittered from the sun's rays. I marched down the narrow muddy path, which didn't do justice to my newly polished black shoes.
Cattle were scattered across the vast farmland, taking advantage of the cool and damp ground brought about by last evening's rain. I continued trekking the unfamiliar place and subdued my unfortunate shoes to the sticky and thick whim of brown mud. I was clad in my community nursing uniform as I went on my way to the family assigned to my care. Finally reaching the doorstep, I knocked on the door of a family of seven who were more than eager to welcome me into their home.
In the first few visits, I have observed and learned from their lifestyle. I was collating the needed information for the requirements I am to pass days after. But, it wasn't long when those visits bounded themselves by concern and empathy, that I wanted to learn more about them not just to satisfy the requirements but to find ways to actually help them.
During those visits, I was supposed to perform one nursing technique in front of my clinical instructor. Anxiety gulped me whole, shaking my most timid nerves. I was to perform urinalysis using acetic acid to determine if one family member, the grandfather, had risk for hypertension as he already had experienced the condition in his middle-age years. I was indeed happy after achieving a concrete result and didn't mess up the technique. Grandpa had a slight risk for the possible recurrence of hypertension. With these findings, I opted to impart some health teachings to eliminate the factors that contribute to such risk. He smokes a pack of cigarettes every day. He drinks whiskey after a tiring day from grazing his cattle and tending his field. A family member said that Grandpa had been smoking for 40 years despite repeated reminders for him to stop.
Grandpa wasn't my only patient. The entire family was. Their lives are intertwined in a web of connection; each triumph will lead to the success of another and each failure will push the dominoes to the downfall of another. The family was living in a semi-permanent house, with no flooring and inadequate furniture. Their animal pens were in proximal distance to their home, thus it wasn't surprising that the chickens would walk in and out of the house so ordinarily and the pig's powerful aroma diffuses to almost anywhere. Their water pump is not yet tested on whether or not it's safe. These and many more are the problems I have observed. Although this may be a typical rural poverty-stricken family lifestyle, soon as the risk factors accumulate, it may endanger their health.
The family with whom I was assigned is just one of the millions of families with the same or even worse conditions. I wonder why our country couldn't see the simplest needs of society and just blabber about theoretical problems. I wonder why our government officials would provide more fund to military force or foreign relations than to the people's health. In other countries, medical and nursing services are within their reach even to the most rural communities, but here in our country the least fortunate would just be happy enough to be visited once a year by a student nurse. I wonder why everyone deems more for a change in the political system, for charter change, while the rest of the people need most the drastic actions to their problems and not comprehensive paper works and countless court sessions and hearings. I wonder why our lawmakers pass countless bills and laws but in the end, the country still suffers from economic insufficiency, from political chaos, and from unsafe drinking water.
During the last day of my visit, the family told me that Grandpa was on the field harvesting rice with the hope of buying a Jollibee meal because it was his granddaughter's birthday. I let out a smile. They added that since the day I visited and imparted my health teachings and told him to drink moderately and stop smoking, Grandpa followed. It's been a week since he stopped completely from smoking and promised to only drink on special occasions. His daughter approached me, held my hand and thanked me for my six days of visit. My smile widened. The family also promised to get their water supply checked and to clean their surroundings regularly.
A student nurse struggling to get her nursing technique done had made even a small change in a family's life. A student nurse with muddy black shoes convinced a Grandpa to stop smoking and improve his health status.
What more can several others do?
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Thank you to Dr. Garin-Vargas for sending her insights regarding my previous article "I don't want to die like Pepe".
(For comments and reactions please send an email to reylangarcia@gmail.com or an SMS to 09186363090. View my blog at http://www.theyoungvoice.blogspot.com)