Nurse Norma Bledman
“I knew what to say and how to say it, so even the things that the patients didn’t want to say, they ended up telling me.”
By Rehana Ahamad and Keeran Danny
When Tuberculosis was looked at as a cause to scorn a fellow human being by society, particularly when its linkage to the deadly HIV/Aids virus became known, Nurse Norma Bledman was one of the very few persons whose only thought at that time was caring for the suffering patients; ensuring that they knew how important their lives were and how necessary it was for them to valiantly fight their illness.
It is no secret that tending to the sick is not an easy job, as everyone may be not be ‘cut out’ for it. Hundreds of nurses have passed through Guyana’s health system, but only the good ones really make a difference.
Like Nurse Bledman, there are some who remain in the pleasant memories of their patients. She is among those who can honestly look back and say “I have done what was required of me.”
At age 79, Nurse Bledman, who retired from the Chest Clinic just last year, dedicated most of her life to caring for persons suffering from Tuberculosis or TB, as it is more familiarly referred to. Although physically tending to them was a challenge by itself, she recalls that in order to be a good nurse, one must “learn how to feel the pain of others; they would have to be able to comfort their patients emotionally”.
Having obtained a Diploma in Social Work, the mother of three knew just how to make her patients feel better.
“I knew what to say and how to say it, so even the things that the patients didn’t want to say, they ended up telling me,” a smiling Ms. Bledman recalled.
She explained that this gave her much joy, especially knowing that she was able to ease the burdens of those suffering not just physically, but emotionally as well.
During a very pleasant interview with this publication, this week’s ‘Special Person’ said that she began her career working in the Palms Geriatric Home on Brickdam, Georgetown, when she was had just turned 18 years old.
There she spent two years and 11 months, after which she joined the staff of the Georgetown Public Hospital in the 1950s and afterward officially started her career in nursing.
Hard at work!
“I had applied to the hospital first, but they said I was too young and they didn’t take me, so I ended up at the Palms, then to the hospital.”
Just two months after she grooved into her new job, Ms. Bledman said that she became pregnant. Although getting married was generally considered the right thing to do, she reflected that she was determined to not just pursue her career, but dedicate her life to it. The then young woman decided that while she would give birth to the child, she would not get married.
“I made a bargain with myself, so I kept it.”
Luckily for her, that was during the time that Mrs. Janet Jagan became Minister of Health, and so mothers were able to get longer maternity leave. After a few months caring for her newborn, Ms. Bledman wasted no time in returning to work, so as to fulfill her “calling.”
“Perhaps fortunately for me, the matron at the time left the job, so when I came back it wasn’t to restart my career, but to continue it,” she reminisced.
“I pushed from there until I did my midwifery training later in the 1960s.”
In addition to her Diploma in Social Work, Ms. Bledman also underwent the necessary training to become a professional nurse. She recounted that at that time, “you had three years to become a professional staff nurse and after that you went and pursued your midwifery course; a total of four years to complete the nursing training.”
Accepting an award for Longstanding Service in 2010 from the then Health Minister, Dr. Leslie Ramsammy.
Talking about her inspiration, she said that as a child, she always wanted to work in the health sector, and having to look after her nieces and nephews at an early age, only proved as a major motivation to her doing so.
She recalled that her mother used to be a part of an “Apprentice Friendly Society” and had to visit and help people.
“I used to love to hear how she would interact with them and her interest in helping people. I realized that people needed caring and not just tablets…they needed talking to; they needed an ear.”
After working a few months at Georgetown Public Hospital, Bledman, as a young nurse, was sent to work at the Best Hospital Sanatorium.
STORMY NIGHT
During her brief tenure there, Bledman recalled one scary night that made her want to leave the nursing profession.
“It was a stormy night,” she said, cattle were grazing on the seashore, and they kept running from one corner to the next. “It was very frightening!” she stressed.
She explained that it was late, and she was alone on the pediatric ward with more than a dozen young children who were “scared out of their minds”.
She recalled that lightning and thunder were no help to the children who were bewildered and scared. “They (the children) were running and screaming,” Bledman remembered.
She explained that she had to gather them all together, and talk and sing to them just so that they would calm down. “I couldn’t think they had TB or other sicknesses. I had to keep them safe.”
However, as a young nurse, Bledman said that she felt frustrated and wanted to leave her job.
“All the poison cases they would vomit, and man, I would say this is not for me. You work in the ward and co-workers would tell you to be careful. We wore masks. Plus, we, the nurses had to empty spittoons and send them to be autoclaved. It was kind of scary, because remember, TB is carried by air.”
Apart from the health risks, Bledman said that as a young nurse, you were required to do a lot more work, like making beds and mopping floors.
Nonetheless, despite all the hardship, and just a few months of becoming a nurse, Bledman said that she understood the true role of a nurse, and the impact that they can make on the lives of sick people, many of whom have lost hope.
It was after that frightening night with the children at the Best Hospital, that Bledman said she realized children were more sensitive and needed extra attention. And that’s when she began practicing the counseling aspect of her profession.
This was the most impacting part of Bledman’s job, since it made a difference in the lives of those who may have lost hope and were being shunned by their families.
“Yes they were shunned, because back then, when people think of TB, right away they think about HIV and AIDS, so it was a major stain on one’s character. It might’ve even ruined lives.”
Eventually, because of her love for children, she left her job as a nurse. She was later employed by the Mayor and City Council (M&CC), where she supervised the Day Care centre.
Ms. Bledman later returned to the Georgetown Public Hospital where she was stationed at the Chest Clinic, and after working there for 20 years, caring for the sick, she retired eight months ago.
Regrettably, she said that due to her commitment to work, she felt that her own children – three of them – might have felt neglected. She reflected that luckily, her older sister, whose children she used to look after, was there to look over and take care of hers.
“I used to feel guilty that I didn’t give them my time, but my job was important, and at the end of the day, duty done and you are rewarded.”
In March 2010, Nurse Bledman was duly rewarded by then Minister of Health, Dr. Leslie Ramsammy, for her longstanding service.
She has been recognized also as one of the persons who insisted that the Chest Clinic be extended and developed into what it is today.
In concluding our interview, Nurse Bledman emphasized the need for young nurses to have discipline, and feel the pain of others.
“They must understand that every person is different, and no matter how we feel, we have to put them first.”
“It gave me a sense of joy to see patients who came very sick and could hardly do anything for themselves, walk out healthy, thanking you, and saying a hearty goodbye ‘nursey’.”