By Kevin Champagne - Local 115 President United Nurses of Alberta.
Written March 2020
When did you become a nurse and where did you get to go to university?
I obtained my degree at the University of Calgary, and I was in the last conjoint program offered between the then Mount Royal College and the University of Calgary. Students were given the option on where they wanted to complete the final two years of the degree program. I chose to spend my remaining years in Calgary completing the program at the U of C, it was closer to home.
What made you decide to join the profession of Nursing?
My mom (Judi Curran) is a Registered Nurse (RN). I grew up watching her as she would leave for work and then return, always so exuberant and excited to be part of such a noble profession. The opportunity to witness her career progression was my inspiration. I was there to see her start as a student nurse. I was a part of her journey as she excelled in the various areas she was entrusted to work. I was always excited to hear her stories about what she accomplished during her shift and the positive impact it had on her patients. As I got older, mom’s stories about work and her amazing colleagues inspired me. I wanted to find out in what direction nursing would take me. I now get to help people in times of personal crisis and as I reflect on the lesson’s mom taught me, I know I am making a positive impact on my patients too.
Where did your mom go to school?
My mom is a Holy Cross Grad. The Holy Cross is where she did most of her training and years working. When the decision was made to close the Holy Cross, mom went to work at the Rocky View General Hospital and began working in their Day Surgery unit. Mom has since retired and finished her career working at Health Link.
Tell us a bit about your family?
I have been married for 10 years. I have two children; my daughter is 9 and my son is closing in on eight. I try not to bring work home all the time. Working at the Foothills Medical Center Emergency department means I don’t always have positive stories that I can share with small children. I do share my passion for nursing with them, and they are super curious. They have learnt that mom can’t share all the details with them. My daughter wants to follow me and become a nurse, and my son wants to become a police officer. My kids are always immensely proud and quick to share with their friends that I am a nurse.
Is the profession of nursing worth fighting for? How are the current systemic changes impacting your view on nursing?
I have a positive view of nursing and still passionately advocate for people to join the profession. What I would say to people struggling with the decision to join nursing is to remind them of the good we do, the positive we bring into the lives of patients we interact daily with. This is a career that allows you to travel the world and has so many exciting areas to be employed. The only limitation on what nursing can do for you is how you approach it.
Can you walk us through your personal journey in nursing to date?
In my fourth year of nursing school, I knew my passion was to work in an emergency department. I knew this field of nursing is where I needed to be. I did not get a practicum placement in an emergency department which was hard at first. I took the placement in the CVICU and Trauma unit as an opportunity to better myself and saw it as an opportunity to hone my skills to be ready to enter the world of emergency nursing. I also sought additional education opportunities at this time, completing my advanced critical care nursing diploma. My practicum placement helped me secure a graduate nurse position on the trauma unit where I was eventually hired as a RN. I didn’t let my dream go and applied for a position in the emergency department a little less than a year into my employment. I was so excited to be given the opportunity to take a position in the ER, my dreams were starting to take shape.
Things are never textbook when you work in an emergency unit and having the experience of working in all areas of the department has allowed me to face new challenges head on. During my time in the department, I completed the STARS academy and was faced with the tough choice to move to Grande Prairie to fly with STARS. I opted to stay, and I have never looked back, for the last 9 years I have been blessed to be one of the educators in the department.
Can you tell our readers about the Emergency department’s physical layout?
Our department has changed quite a bit over the years in terms of our capacity and footprint. We have an exceptionally large footprint currently. There are a total of seventy-nine beds and three trauma bays. We used to have 4 but with COVID we have taken a trauma bay space to allow an area for COVID precautions.
On average the department sees between 220 and 250 patients in a 24-hour period. With a close to 30 percent admission rate going into the department that leaves 70 % being turned over to community support and services.
The department is a level 1 trauma centre, the stroke centre for Southern Alberta, Cardiac Cath Lab centre and we have don’t turn any age groups away. Many people don’t know that we provide services to all ages. The scope of what we offer ensures we see a wide variety of illness presentations, and support Albertans when they are at their worst. We do what it takes to make them feel safe and well cared for.
How has the global pandemic impacted the department?
We are fortunate to have great leadership associated with our department. When the world was learning about global risk the department didn’t sit ideally. We started preparation and planning in early February. As a team we wanted to be ahead and prepared, it wasn’t an option to be playing catch up and chasing our tails.
Since the beginning of March masking for all patients, visitors and staff was implemented. Screening protocols have been put in place and the flow of patients presenting with COVID like symptoms is controlled in the department.
At this point all staff are well prepared. They have been receptive to the measures put in place and have expressed gratitude that the planning started so early. As a department we all should be proud of how we aim to protect each other and the patients we are trusted to care for.
What has been your biggest challenge as an RN?
Outside of COVID, protecting ourselves from workplace violence is the biggest challenge to any ER department. When patients come into the department in crisis they can be irrationally stressed and their responses to additional stimuli can result in patients acting out aggressively. I do find workplace violence increasing. I believe for the longest time nurses accepted this as a normal part of the job. This is not a part of the job anyone must accept and work together so we can change the workplace culture. AHS has great resources to support workers, and I encourage everyone to file MSN reports when experiencing violence. Violence doesn’t need to be a daily occurrence; we can learn to protect ourselves.
What is the best part of being an emergency room nurse?
The people we care for and my colleagues. I enjoy the support shared amongst all disciplines within the department. We all share the same drive and have similar thoughts on work ethic.
What do you do for fun?
I volunteer for the Calgary Stampede, and I am the chair for the parade committee. I also love getting outside with my kids and enjoy splashing around the water in Windermere.
Do you have a favorite book or movie?
Everything in my life right now revolves around my kids, but I do love watching cooking shows. I think I would be an amazing judge on a baking competition, I have such a sweet tooth.
What does being a part of a union mean to you?
I have reflected on this a lot and knowing that we have a collective voice to ensure our work environment is safe gives me comfort. The union is the voice of the nurses that keeps staffing levels safe and allows us to provide the care we are trained to deliver.