My First Job

Just before my birthday in February of 1970 my father said "Get a Job." So I did! As soon as I turned 16 I was able to take a Nurses Aid class at the hospital in Milford from Jackie Williams who was the head nurse there for many years. She was a rather large woman with a very distinct walk whom I had known all my life. She always seemed very happy to me.

Some of the things I learned in this class were: how to take blood pressures, temperatures, pulse and respirations as well as basic AM and PM care including helping some one brush their teeth in bed and prepare for meals. I learned how to give a bed bath, a back rub, change a bed using flat sheets, how to get someone in and out of bed safely and into a wheel chair.

There were many residents in the extended care facility on one wing of the hospital. This is where I learned to love the elderly people. They were always so appreciative of any small thing you would do for them and loved to have you spend time with them.

I worked at the hospital from February 1970 until May of 1972 when I graduated from High School. Working part time and on call meant that sometimes I had scheduled shifts and sometimes I was on call and only had to come in if they called me to come. The shifts were from 6 to 8 am or from 4 to 9 pm. Sometimes I would be scheduled to work a full shift on Saturday or Sunday or Holidays. I believe my starting pay was $1.15 an hour.

As I look back on this experience, I recall having some unique experiences and also having experiences that had a great effect on my life.

One experience was on a morning shift. My assignment was to take vital signs in the geriatric wing. This meant your woke them up, took vital signs, let them wash their hands and face and get ready for breakfast. One particular morning when I was a relatively new employee, I entered the room of an elderly man by the name of Fatheringham I "shook down" the thermometer and placed it under his arm and proceeded to take his pulse which he no longer had. His skin was cool to the touch and having never touched a dead body, I quickly walked down the hall and told the RN Charlene Cook, that maybe she should come and check on him. Charlene laughed and laughed at me for leaving the thermometer under his arm and trying to take his pulse when it was very obvious that he had passed away if I had just looked at him more closely.

We had a patient named Mr. Asay who had Emphysema. He had a huge barrel chest from his lungs trying to expand to get enough oxygen for his body's needs. Mr Asay had smoked for many years and was so addicted to cigarettes that he would turn off the oxygen, smoke his cigarette and turn the oxygen back on when he was finished. He would cough and cough. Each night he would lay across the bed with his head down over the side and you would have to pound on his back to help loosen the secretions in his lungs so he could expel them and allow him to breath easier. Mr. Asay eventually died from this disease, literally gasping for every breath. The affects of smoking were very ugly and very real. Any one who witnessed it could not help but be dissuaded from smoking.

I also learned about chemicals and the consequences of mixing them together. I was working a night shift again with Charlene Cook. She had gone into the Delivery room to clean up after an earlier birth. All of a sudden she came running down the hall yelling at me to open the windows and doors and get some air flowing. She had put two cleaning solutions together and it had created potent fumes. Luckily no one was adversely affected but we had to stay out of the area until it had "aired out."

Another experience was seeing someone in the "DT's". Occasionally we would have an alcoholic who would be in withdrawal. They would see spiders in the air or feel things crawling on them. Some times they would need to be restrained so they would not hurt themselves or the nurses. All these experiences have remained vivid in my mind.

One of the most difficult experiences I had was working when a friend of mine from Minersville came into the hospital. Her name was Konda Marshall. She was nearly a year older than I was. We had been friends for along time. Her father had a farm near ours and we spent time together.

When Konda was nearly 17 she got the flu. For 4 days she had been vomiting. Unable to keep anything in her stomach. Her parents brought her to the hospital for an injection to help settle her stomach. Konda had a convulsion and was admitted to the hospital. Dr Symonds was at the hospital for many hours working with her. He was on the phone to Salt Lake talking to different doctors. That evening as I worked I avoided going into her room. I was frightened.

Dr. Symonds was frightened. I remember the vials and vials of medication that were all sitting on the counter. Medication that had been given to Konda to try to save her. Her family were all with her, and as the night wore on, it became apparent that she was not going to make it. More nurses were called in and I was sent home. Konda died the next morning. Her funeral stands out in mind and whenever I hear the song "Bridge Over Troubled Waters" I remember Konda and the fun we had together.

This is also the hospital were my father died. Each time I visit there I remember the room he was in, and the time I spent sitting by his side while he was comatose and near death.
One of the positive memories I have of working at the Milford Hospital was the food. Each morning when we were finished with our work and ready to go to school, we could go to the kitchen and have breakfast. There would be a huge pan of scrambled eggs with a cube of butter melting on top. I would make toast and put a fat layer of those wonderful scrambled eggs dripping with butter and place another piece of toast on top. It is still one of my favorite breakfasts minus all the butter. Mrs Gillins was a wonderful cook. She cooked like my grandmother Emma Rollins cooked. I'm not sure it would be considered healthy today but it was always delicious!
Some of the other people I worked with were: Judy Cook Hardy, Linley Jefferson, Anne Denny,and Jill Puffer.
I am grateful that my Dad "encouraged" me to get a job. Having this experience helped me to make the decision to attend Nursing School.
After High School Graduation I attended 2 semesters at College of Southern Utah, CSU in Cedar City then transfered to BYU for Winter semester where I was excepted to the BYU College of Nursing.