From the hospital room to the track: "Nursing teaches me many valuable things"

Nursing staff always play a very important role in health care. International Nurses Day (May 12) is an occasion to honor the silent but indispensable contributions of nursing staff around the world, and at the same time, it is an opportunity to promote policies to develop the nursing profession in a professional and sustainable manner.

Below is the story of Ms. Vu Hoang Anh, former head nurse of the Spinal Surgery Department, Viet Duc Friendship Hospital, about her 35-year journey in the profession.

From the first days of confusion, having to boil syringes, sharpen needles...

Born and raised in the capital city of Hanoi , Ms. Vu Hoang Anh has spent more than three decades in the nursing profession - a career that was not her initial choice when she was still in school, but eventually became a lifelong mission that she pursued and cherished. At the age of 57, she has been a nurse for more than 35 years.

After graduating from the Intermediate Medical School, now Hanoi Medical College, in September 1989 she started working at the Orthopedic Department of Viet Duc Friendship Hospital. The medical industry at that time faced numerous difficulties, from poor facilities, outdated equipment to a working environment of old buildings built during the French colonial period that had deteriorated.

She shared: "The syringes at that time were made of glass, the needles were sharpened and boiled to reuse for patients.

Items such as gauze and cotton had to be homemade and crudely sterilized. Drainage used glass bottles that had to be washed over and over again, and formalin had to be soaked for multiple uses. When preparing for surgery, an aluminum cup and funnel had to be used to enema the patient. Everything was difficult and lacking, without the disposable, sterilized tools available today."

For Ms. Hoang Anh, nursing was not her first choice, but it became the path she devoted her whole life to and loved (Photo: NVCC).

However, it was those days of overcoming difficulties that forged her to become stronger and more courageous. At that time, she clearly remembered that there were colleagues who were so poor that they had to sell their blood to feed their children, but they were still dedicated to their work.

"I always cherish those difficult times because they teach me many things, so that I can grow up in work and life. And no matter what difficulties I face in the future, I consider them small things, I can overcome them, never think of difficulties as something to discourage me. Difficulties are sometimes valuable assets, when you overcome them, you will grow up a lot," she confided.

From 2008 until retirement, she held the position of head nurse of the Spinal Surgery Department, Institute of Trauma and Orthopedics, Viet Duc Friendship Hospital.

Continuously learning to improve her qualifications, she completed her Bachelor of Nursing program at Hanoi Medical University (2009), Master of Hospital Management (2015), continued to study for a Bachelor of English Pedagogy at the University of Foreign Languages ​​- Vietnam National University, Hanoi (2020) and Nursing Specialist I at Nam Dinh University of Nursing (2020).

It was the days of overcoming difficulties that forged me to become stronger and more courageous. Difficulties are sometimes valuable assets, when we overcome them, we will grow up a lot.

Ms. Vu Hoang Anh Nguyen, Head Nurse, Spinal Surgery Department, Viet Duc Friendship Hospital

"My job has taught me many things, taught me to care and share, taught me how to behave and communicate flexibly in society, gave me the knowledge to take care of other people's health, to care and share with people around me.

People say that when one person works in the medical profession, the whole family benefits. That is partly true. But first, we have to serve society. This is a profession that brings charity to everyone, a profession that brings happiness and laughter to the sick," she said.

No matter what position she holds, nurse or head nurse, she always sets clear priorities.

The first thing is that everywhere we must comply with the law, taking the operating principles of the health sector and the hospital as the first priority, then the second priority is the patient, the third is the department where we work, and the fourth is our colleagues, and finally ourselves. The collective benefit of the patient is paramount.

To the strong, sturdy "gatekeeper" of the Spinal Surgery Department

The Spinal Surgery Department - where she works - is one of the most specialized departments and has the largest workload in the hospital. In the past three years, the department has received tens of thousands of patients for examination, performed more than 6,000 elective surgeries and 600-700 emergency cases.

Ms. Hoang Anh (far right) visited a patient with doctors from the Spinal Surgery Department (Photo: Provided by the character).

Meanwhile, spinal surgery is a specialized surgery, patients often have the fear of paralysis or sequelae. Therefore, in addition to good surgeons, the nursing team must also be specialized and proficient in pre-, intra- and post-operative care to monitor, restore mobility and provide psychological support to patients.

During her work, she has faced many stressful situations, from the extremism of patients' families to misunderstandings about medical ethics. In almost every incident, the nurse is the first to face it.

"Therefore, we must be considerate and gentle enough to resolve the frustration, help patients and their families feel secure in their treatment, and put the patient at the center. Even though family members may lose control and raise their voices, nurses are not allowed to react negatively. Sometimes we must be gentle, sometimes we must be firm, but we must never lose our culture and standards of behavior," she said.

During her 35 years of working in the profession, she has received many certificates of merit from the Ministry of Health, and emulation fighters at the grassroots level, among which the certificate of merit she cherishes is the certificate of merit from the Minister of Health - Certificate of merit and letter of commendation from the Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee for her achievements in fighting the Covid-19 epidemic. For her, that was a meaningful time that she will never forget.

One and a half months of participating in the fight against Covid-19 in Ho Chi Minh City is a period of time she will never forget (Photo: NP).

Responding to the call of the Ministry of Health and the Hospital Director, along with hundreds of staff of Viet Duc Friendship Hospital, she volunteered to go to the front line to fight the epidemic with the wish to contribute her professional experience and enthusiasm as a medical staff to society.

She still remembers the feeling of the evening when she landed at Tan Son Nhat airport. Ho Chi Minh City at that time was no longer the familiar bustling metropolis, but like a "lights off" city. There was not a soul in sight, the airport was silent as if abandoned. That image was imprinted in her mind like a black and white film.

During the month and a half in Ho Chi Minh City, she and her colleagues did not have a day off. They worked from 6am to 6pm every day, regardless of Saturday or Sunday.

The treatment center has more than 600 people, her job is not only to take care of patients but also to take on the role of management, coordination, and ensuring epidemic prevention safety. And she is always proud that with her contribution, she has ensured the safety of the working group and completed the task.

And the "warrior" inspires other breast cancer patients

The journey of living with cancer made her realize her new mission: to accompany, share, and give strength to other patients (Photo: NVCC).

In 2022, she discovered she had breast cancer during a routine health check-up at the hospital.

"On August 15, 2022, the biopsy results came back and the doctor said it was definitely breast cancer. At that time, I was not afraid or panicked at all. Maybe because I had experienced many things in life and in my career, I learned how to calmly face them," she shared.

As a medical worker, she was fortunate to receive the attention of her colleagues and quickly decided to have surgery. She went into surgery on August 23, was discharged from the hospital on August 31, and after only one month, she began treatment at K3 Hospital.

The time spent working as both a medical staff and a cancer patient was a special time for her. Not only did she receive treatment, she also spent time reading more documents, researching professional knowledge, and more importantly, sharing her real experiences with other breast cancer patients.

One special thing about her is her attachment to sports, which she considers indispensable to overcome the disease. Since finishing treatment, she has actively practiced many sports such as jogging, cycling, jumping rope, swimming, folk dancing... She tries to practice whenever possible, at least 60-120 minutes/day.

For Ms. Hoang Anh, exercising is an indispensable factor to overcome illness (Photo: NP).

To overcome herself, she signed up for running races. Two years ago, she participated in a 10km race for the first time. To date, she has completed three 21km races, a number that many healthy people would admire.

Now, she brings her passion to convey to fellow patients, not only to practice but also to connect, encourage each other to practice health and maintain a positive, optimistic spirit.

From January 1, 2025, she will retire. But for her, retirement does not mean stopping. The journey of living with cancer has made her realize her new mission: to accompany, share, and give strength to women who are confused between the boundary of life and death due to illness.

"I don't want anyone to be alone when facing cancer. As long as someone gives them faith, they will have the motivation to overcome it," she shared.

So, retirement is not the end but the beginning of a new journey, she will continue to dedicate herself to her career.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/suc-khoe/tu-buong-benh-den-duong-chay-nghe-dieu-duong-day-toi-nhieu-dieu-tran-quy-20250511204823271.htm