A nurse’s duties
go far beyond the
popular perception
of being a doctor’s
assistant. Healthcare
Scholar Cherie Koh
tells us about her
enriching career as
a Senior Staff Nurse.
While doctors are hailed as the day-to-day heroes or as life-savers, less
is known about the important role
nurses play in delivering safe and quality care for
patients. Nurses support patients' recovery from
illness by carrying out assessments, monitoring
vital signs and observing trends, assisting with
invasive procedures and administering drugs and
injections.
And for 26-year-old Senior Staff Nurse Cherie
Koh, her unique encounters with her patients over
four years has certainly convinced her that nursing
is where her passion lies. She enthuses, “Every shift
is unique because you get to meet people from all
walks of life! This helps keep my passion in nursing
burning strong as I am challenged by the unknown
that I face daily at work.”
What Motivated You To Pursue A
Nursing Profession?
Cherie Koh: From young, I’ve always wanted
to pursue a career in the healthcare industry. My
poor health in my youth, which resulted in multiple
hospital admissions, made me realise that I too
wanted to help others just like these 'hospital
heroes'!
"... the
professionalism I saw in the nurses who treated each patient with so much care and sincerity truly
inspired me to be just like them."
My only dilemma was choosing from the various
nursing and Allied Health professions available. I
worked as a Patient Service Associate in the NUH
Cancer Centre while awaiting my ‘A’ Level results
and got to observe what different healthcare
professionals do – this definitely motivated me to
join the nursing profession.
I also realised that some cancer patients
may get stares from the public because of their
tumours and the treatment they undergo. But the
professionalism I saw in the nurses who treated each patient with so much care and sincerity truly
inspired me to be just like them.
Tell Us More About Your Roles And
Responsibilities As A Senior Staff
Nurse. What Do You Look Forward
To In Your Future In This Role?
Cherie: A nurse is not just a doctor’s helper
who only cleans up patients – there is actually
much more that nurses do! Nurses act as patients'
advocates and are the communication bridge
between doctors, patients and other Allied Health
professionals. They liaise with medical social
workers and community service providers to plan
patient discharges so as to facilitate and ease
the transition of patients back home and into the
community.
In addition to these duties, I also guide and
mentor the student and junior nurses. I will also
have to stand in for my Nursing Officers when
they are not around, as well as handle queries or
complaints from the public.
I definitely look forward to changing the
perception of nurses in the public’s eye in the
future. With the new National Nursing Taskforce,
the Government is paying more attention to the
welfare of nurses working in Singapore. I hope this
will attract more young locals to join our exciting
profession. It will also be really interesting to see
how the increasing use of technology can enhance
nurses' work in the near future.
How Has Your Scholarship Journey
Prepared You For Your Career?
Cherie: Studying abroad has indeed made
me more independent. I have learnt to be more
confident when talking to people I may have shied away from due to the language barrier. I’ve also
been given various opportunities to hone my
leadership skills through pre-departure workshops
and Outward Bound Singapore (OBS) activities.
During the summer holidays of my second
undergraduate year, I was given the opportunity
to intern with a sponsoring organisation. The
nurse educator came up with an educational
schedule and I spent a week each in a surgical
ward, medical ward, medical Intensive Care Unit
and the Emergency Department. This experience
helped me better understand how the Singapore
healthcare system works and I was even able
to appreciate the differences between the UK’s
healthcare system and Singapore’s!
What Is Your Biggest Challenge
Faced Each Day And How Do You
Overcome It?
Cherie: The biggest challenge I face is in
meeting the increasing expectations of patients
and their family members. With the proliferation
of the Internet, patients and their families are
better educated about their conditions and are
more curious about how to manage them.
Cherie Koh Sin Teng
Healthcare Scholar
Designation:
Senior Staff Nurse II
Studied:
Bachelor of Nursing (Honours),
University of Manchester, UK
Advanced Diploma in Nursing
(Medical – Surgical),
Nanyang Polytechnic
The information they read may be incorrect at
times and I occasionally find it difficult to convince
them otherwise. In order to overcome this, I need
to build up my rapport with each patient or family
member and assure them that they can always
depend on me if they ever need any additional
information.
"If you have the
Head for knowledge, the Heart to care and a pair
of Hands that are not afraid of touching patients,
please join us in this fulfilling and exciting career!"
What Words Of Wisdom Would
You Have For Aspiring Healthcare
Scholars?
Cherie: I find it most fulfilling when I receive a
simple 'thank you' from patients with a smile on
their face as they are discharged from the hospital
– it gives you immense satisfaction knowing you
have made a difference in their lives!
Someone also told me that a nurse will need
the 3 H's when pursuing a career in Healthcare:
the Head, the Heart and the Hands. If you have the
Head for knowledge, the Heart to care and a pair
of Hands that are not afraid of touching patients,
please join us in this fulfilling and exciting career!