Our Frontline Worker of the Week is… Nurse Clarissa Hall

Feb 28, 2021 News

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By Sharmain Grainger

Kaieteur News – People may gravitate to a particular career for several reasons, one of which is to merely receive an income. But there are some who would do what must be done in their line of work, even if satisfactory payment was non-existence, simply because they are driven purely by passion for what they do.
Fitting neatly into this mould is a passionate nurse by the name of Clarissa Hall. For this very reason she was nominated to be featured as our Frontline Worker this Week.
However, there are many within the field who understand all too well the depths from which Nurse Hall’s enthusiasm comes. In reflection mode, she recently recalled that hers took root several years ago when her beloved maternal grandmother, the late Cleopatra Celestine Success, became seriously ill and required the nurturing care only a nurse could provide. What she witnessed back then was just how important nurses are in the grant scheme of things when it comes to helping to save the lives of patients. “The nurses were instrumental in my grandmother’s recovery and while visiting her in the hospital, I was inspired by their ability to intercede for their patients by understanding their needs, making them feel comfortable and promptly administering care when needed,” Nurse Hall shared.
By the time her grandmother was fully on the way to recovery, the young and impressionable Clarissa was vowing to become a nurse. She decided since then, “I would feel honoured to do the same for other families who need a strong, intelligent caretaker (healthcare provider).”
But despite the sprouting desire, one would be surprised to know that delving into the realm of nursing was not supposed to be on the cards for our featured Frontline Worker. She confided recently that she had in fact had a liking for teaching and even had her mind set on becoming an educator. But all that changed when her grandmother became a patient. “The way my grandmother was treated while being in the hospital and me going there every day to assist and care for her, helped me to love nursing,” she confessed.

FOUNDATION
On July 15, 1994, Clarissa Angelica Nurse, was ushered into the world by her loving parents – her father, Nicholas Hall, a photographer, and her mother, Debra Success-Hall, the National VCT Coordinator of the Ministry of Health’s National AIDS Programme. Clarissa turned out to be the last of four children her parents’ union produced.
The resident of Plaisance, East Coast Demerara, recalled attending the East Street Nursery and then the North Georgetown Primary before securing a place at the North Georgetown Secondary School. Back then she was enthused by dancing and the subject area (Food and Nutrition practical) that helps to tantalize the taste buds.
But as she grew older, it became clear that the idea of being in the field of nursing had taken her captive. She moreover decided to enroll at the Georgetown School of Nursing to complete the requisite training and today, five years on, she has an immeasurable appreciation for the role of a nurse. “Nurses are the most trusted healthcare professionals. They are with patients throughout the continuum of life. Nurses are teachers, advocates, caregivers, critical thinkers and innovators,” boasted Nurse Hall who functions out of the country’s premiere public health institution, the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation.
“They do so much more than care for individuals; their presence 24/7 has transformed lives. Nursing is an honourable profession, and nurses are the heart and soul of the healthcare system,” she proudly added.
COVID-19
But nursing the way she was accustomed to five years ago has evolved with the advent of COVID-19. Considering the role she now plays in the quest to combat the disease, Nurse Hall said, “I have critical roles and responsibilities during the pandemic” and “I will continue to be at the frontline of patient care in the hospital and actively involved with evaluation and monitoring in the community.”
Nurse Hall is also tasked with helping to ensure that all patients acquire personalized, high-quality services, irrespective of their infectious condition.
Always prepared for any eventualities, she also helps to “maintain an effective supply and usage of sanitation materials and personal protective equipment, and offers screening information, confinement guidelines, and triage protocols based on the latest guidance.” In fact, she now has a first-hand appreciation that “a global pandemic needs strong nursing staff engagement in clinical management, awareness and knowledge exchange, and public safety.”
She has learnt too, since her exposure to COVID-19, that, “We need to be better prepared for the future. We have learned how to work through the social isolation that our patients and families are experiencing, by finding novel ways to communicate via the use of iPads, Face Time, etc. The use of telemedicine has greatly improved our ability to continue a provider relationship with our patients.”
Although there have been many gains, in terms of the recoveries, Nurse Hall said that the fight against COVID-19 has not been a tranquil experience for nurses. As she spoke of one of her colleagues who was inflicted with the disease, she admitted that she does worry about being infected too.
“Most issues that face nurses when dealing with patients with COVID-19,” she said, “can be summarized into two main types. The first involves staff shortages, depression related to anxiety and fear of infection, a lack of communication with patients, and exhaustion due to working long hours without proper nourishment. The second type involves a lack of medical supplies and resources, such as personal protective equipment (PPE).”
To help safeguard herself and others, she daily adheres to the recommended measures such as sanitizing, wearing a face mask and social distancing, and she is never without her PPEs while at work. In fact, “praying and keeping safe,” goes hand in hand for her these days.
But the soon to be wife of Ezekiel Eucy Whatley, despite being immersed in her profession, has not forgotten the importance of family and therefore continues to make time for them, even virtually, as much as she can. She has also learnt to make herself comfortable at home and added, “I’m learning to enjoy my own company,” a tactic she has embraced with the safety of her loved ones in mind.

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