Calgary General Hospital - In Cap and Uniform Yearbook (Calgary, Alberta Canada)

Page 56 text:

O.R. Saturday Night The usual dose is seven Taken as the case may be But mine turned out eleven And then another three Now this is Sat. to which I call Your attention now as this is all. I worked awhile at counting things And this is where the fun begins, I climbed up ladders till I thought If I climbed one more I’d be apt to drop. So, just for a change I ' d go have a look, At Bessie and Betsy and the little black book, Bess is slow with an hour load, Betsy makes up like a hopping toad, I run a cart down to the back (I know how 3W likes that?) And empty—Betsy—with a learned nack. Then a refill and turn on the steam. We work together like a willing team; But Bessie, big autoclave, is so slow 1 guess I will to supper go Return once more my rounds to make Of Bess, etc., and then to take The count of dressing by the score Just for variety upon the floor (I used the table) Fifty-six, fifty-seven, the telephone rings. Accident -yes, right away—yes—yes— Bang!—We now begin This can go on the whole night long. But lucky for me not when I was on. After interruptions like this and so Back once more to counting I go. Of course I’ve forgotten and have to restort But finally load up the last O.R. cart. And straighten up my aching back To find I’ve lost all track of time. I must tidy up for seven is nigh. Whoopee! -only I heave a big sigh. This may be exaggerated here and there, But when you are finished go sleep if you dare.

Page 55 text:

Operating Room Miss Baker Miss Klein The Operating Room, situated on the west end of the fourth floor of our Hospital, is the setting for an important and interesting part of our training. It consists of a workroom, desk areas, a sterilizing room, the Doctors Room, a small X-Ray Room, and four Major and two Minor Operating Rooms: Here, under the efficient and helpful guidance of our Supervisor, Miss Baker; the Assistant Supervisor, Miss Klein, and the Graduates, we spend three fascinat¬ ing months. Each student starts at the bottom as Junior and works to the top or Senior. Each week the duties vary, starting with the initial training of the cleansing of instruments, enamel, gloves, etc., progressing each week into a new type of work until we have been taught the technique of scrubbing; wearing gown and gloves; waiting on a room during an operation; assisting with minor operations, and later, major operations; the principles of sterilization of all O.R. supplies; how to check gloves; how to prepare all linen and gowns for sterilizing for operations; how to set up rooms for Ops.; the selection and care of instruments for minor cases and how to prepare all O.R. supplies in¬ cluding dressings, linen, solutions, etc. Of the three months, two weeks arc spent on night duty. In this time, the nurses handle emergency cases; make supplies; sterilize supplies and prepare the rooms for the following day. This, then, is the O.R., a busy excitinq unit which supplies a valuable training to our nurses. Do you remember?— 1—Your first week and all the scrub- bies. 2—Your first T A. 3—Classes in draping, and our friend. 4—Lunch at 2.00 p.m. and the imperial that re¬ freshes. 5 -Making dressings on Sun¬ days by the dozens. 6—Saturday: cleaning. 7—Your Sunday on sutures. 8— ALL and we mean all the emer¬ gencies.

Page 57 text:

Diet Kitchen And last, but not least, our tour brings us to the fifth floor, the very top of the building, where one of our essential industries is carried out. Here, above the aches and pains, our food is prepared and though at times we hate to admit we all eat or live or should we say live to eat? This department is divided into two sections, the main kitchen where skilled cooks prepare the food that makes up the full light and soft diets and the diet kitchen in which the nurses concoct the contents of the unusual diets. The junior nurse spends most of her time and energy behind a large stack of pots and pans after having been educated in the technique of cooking por¬ ridge without burning it, and making chocolate syrup without boiling it over. In close opposition we see another nurse preparing all the oddities of special diets. Her job does not stop when she goes off duty, for then she must take the menu and sort out what the cardiac nephritic and sippy diets, etc. are allowed. For these patients she substitutes the various dishes, to which they are restricted for the items they are not allowed on the general menu. When you have been in the diet kitchen a set length of time, you work on diabetic diets. These girls sit and weigh the different foods they have select¬ ed for diabetic patients. They then store these foods in the refrigerator on large trays being very careful not to slip and spill the contents en route to cold storage. After spending the allotted time in these different sections, the last week in the diet kitchen is very varied because the senior nurse spends this week filling in the different stations as each student has her day off. After a train¬ ing of this kind he who says a nurse, is a poor cook may be right.