Mercy Wah: Tell us a little about yourself, where are you from, where do you work, and if you’re attending any schools right now?
Beatrice: Hi my name is Beatrice and I work at Bentley Commons at Paragon Village – an assisted living facility- in Hackettstown. I am currently studying at William Patterson to get my BSN. I am a part of the BSN program there.
Mercy Wah: How has your working environment changed since Covid?
Beatrice: The environment has become a lot more hostile now, because people are afraid of catching Covid. People have become more tense and alert at work, in hopes that they don’t contract the virus
Mercy Wah: Would you say such a work environment is mentally draining?
Beatrice: I would describe it as bitter sweet. Bitter because I would have to come to a hostile work place- especially when the pandemic was at its peak, but it also created a good outcome of people practicing better hygiene, like washing their hands more often.
Mercy Wah: On the topic of people becoming more hygienic, specific to your job description, what did people do before, compared to what they are doing now?
Beatrice: As the director of nursing at Bentley Commons, my job consists of me managing the nursing departments. I typically deal with families, and paperwork rather than the patients. The floor nurses are the ones that have more of a direct contact with patients. However, during the pandemic, when a lot of the nurses were out sick I had the opportunity to step on the floor and lend a hand to the little nurses that were left. I had more interactions with patients – I had to go out, pass meds, treat patients and this is also where I noticed the new precautions that were taking place such as more hygiene and washing hands.
Mercy Wah: Since you’re more interactive with the families of the patients, did you come into contact with any family members of a Covid victim, and if so how did that experience go?
Beatrice: Definitely, and it was very emotional. The thing is working in this field you kind of build a connection with the patients. Especially in an assisted living facility, the patients are spending more time with you than their family members, so you develop strong bonds with these people. I lost one of my favorite residents during the pandemic, and I had to tell the family about the death of their lost one. It was very emotional, I even cried. It’s very difficult because it’s like you’re trying to deal with your emotions and keep it professional while also trying to comfort the family- it was a lot.
Mercy Wah: Would you say this affected you mentally, and if so how did you cope?
Beatrice: It absolutely affected my mental health, but I just had to keep pushing.