Nancy Ndlovu, RPN

"I believe nursing is a service, a service to the community, to humanity, to other people. It is a relationship, a professional relationship."

The following is an excerpt from a conversation between Carol Farkas, Director of Clinical Healthcare Services and Nancy Ndlovu, RPN:

C: So, Nancy, tell me, what is your background?

N: I'm an RPN, studying towards my degree. This is actually a second career for me. I came to Canada when I was 19, barely a year out of high school and for the next 6 years or so I worked in customer service.

C: What kind of customer service did you do?

N: I did everything from waiting tables to over the phone customer service, telemarketing, collections and then inbound and outbound customer service. Then when that industry took a downturn and I found it difficult to get work, I took a couple of workshops in figuring out what you'd like to be through the Government of Canada. Because I have a science background I thought I could put the customer service and the science together.

C: Where did you go to school?

N: I went to George Brown College. It was a two year program. I started in 2008 and finished in 2010. It was extremely vigorous but it was a wonderful program.

C: Did you start to work right away?

N: I got my license in July 2010, started to look for work in earnest but I wasn't able to find a position at that time. So I applied for a bridging program. I started by doing a prerequisite of one year at Centennial College and continued to look for work. Unfortunately, when I was offered a position in September I had already started school. So, I opted to stay in school. But I planned ahead and come April I started looking for work again. Through networking and through the Carecor website, that's how I actually came here to Carecor.

C: You said you had a science background, but that could have really led you anywhere. What inspired you specifically to go into nursing?

N: I felt I needed to go to school to make myself marketable, to be honest, I just thought I had the skills to make it through that program. So, semester upon semester I was able to prove to myself that it was something that I wanted to do. Once we got to the point when we were taking care of clients I realized that this was something that I actually enjoyed, as well as able to do.

C: What would you say are the attributes you need to be a good nurse? Is it just being smart or is it more than that?

N: I think you do have to have book smarts in order to cope with the academics that they throw at you, however, book smarts are not enough to become a nurse. You need to be able to balance your life. You need to have responsibility for yourself as well as for other people. It doesn't mean that when you start the educational process you have those skills but it just means that by the end of the process, if you make it through, you will definitely have those skills.

C: How would you define nursing to someone who doesn't know what it is about?

N: I believe nursing is a service, a service to the community, to humanity, to other people. It is a relationship, a professional relationship. You have to know how to maintain boundaries and how to respect people because you're coming into their personal space. You are meeting people at the happiest or most difficult times of their lives, so it's a very vulnerable state for you to be, for you as the nurse as well as for the person that you're caring for.

C: I want to pick up on your point there, because I would agree that certainly there are boundaries that have to be set. How do you personally separate yourself and have that balance?

N: It is very difficult, Carol, and I'm not sure if it's possible to completely separate yourself and I don't think that's what expected of a nurse or as a person. I reflect on the things that I experience throughout my day, and I learn from those experiences. And the thing is the client is always in power. It might seem as though the nurse is the expert, but it is the client who is directing the care, and I personally feel that I need to make them feel that they are in control of what is happening to them, that they do have choices, and that they are respected. So when I do that, even if it is a difficult situation, when I go home I honestly feel as though I helped that person.

C: What would you say is the most interesting situation that you have faced either as a student nurse or a working nurse?

N: The one that stands out for me wasn't a happy moment but I felt it was very empowering. I was a student and caring for a client who was a palliative individual. He showed so much grace, seemed in control of his destiny and in control of his care. Also, his family was around him. I think that is the most we can ask for, that one is surrounded by the people who care for you when you are in a difficult situation like that, when you are going to die. So he did die during my placement. It is not for me to say whether it was a peaceful death or not, but it was as he wanted it to be. He had it written out exactly what would happen and he planned everything. To have been in that vulnerable state, yet to say this is what is going to happen in my life, in a way it was beautiful. It really was beautiful and peaceful in that respect.

C: On a personal level, is there anything else you're interested in doing?

N: I like to think of myself as a jack-of-all-trades. But, I enjoy taking walks around my neighbourhood and I also volunteer on a tenant's committee for the safety and security of my building. I participate in that once a month and I really enjoy that. Once I finish school and I'm settled, I'd like to travel around Canada.