You know what's funny and frustrating at the same time? People in the office expect so much from me just because I'm a nurse. They think I can diagnose someone instantly, as if I'm supposed to have all the answers right away! LOL. And on top of that, they expect me to go the extra mile if someone is sick in the office. Why should I stress myself out over things I can't control?

Recently, one of my colleagues was hospitalized with dengue, and many of my officemates have been really invested and busy looking after him, which is nice of them. I visited him too, but I can't spend all my time at the hospital taking care of him. Our accountant, a Sri Lankan guy, has been particularly mean and always makes derogatory jokes about it. He says things like, "You're the nurse here; you should do this and that." Most of the time, I don't find it funny—it's actually really annoying. I have my own responsibilities, and if I help out, it's because I want to, not because I'm told to. This person has been particularly toxic for me.

The other day, Amila was having knee pain, and Addy pointed me out, saying, "Oh, here's Gilbert, he's a nurse," implying that I should take a look. So I started assessing Amila, asking about the pain—how it felt, if he did anything before the pain started, if it was a constant pain, and so on. They weren't taking me seriously and thought I was just messing around. It was mind-blowing how clueless they were about how diagnoses are supposed to work. You can't just say something without properly assessing the person.

I'm not the best nurse, but I'm trying to be good at this profession. However, I'm not even practicing nursing here to begin with.

Labels: maldives, office, work