My current position as a registered nurse is in palliative care. In this field of nursing we are often provided with tangible evidence that our nursing care has made a difference by way of the death notices in the paper, where we are thanked, praised and provided with donations, some of which have increased my waist line by several inches. However these messages of thanks are often written for our entire team, so knowing how you make a difference in your individual day to day practice is not easy to quantify.

Nevertheless, I am reminded as I write this of the many times that I have been called out in the night to a patient in extreme pain and family members who are unable to cope. I have been able to ease this pain through my nursing knowledge, by being present, by the use of touch, therapeutic communication, medication administration and personal cares. I have sat on the floor with a patient who has collapsed from respiratory arrest and provided care that has eased their breathlessness and provided them with a peaceful death.

I have spent time talking and explaining to patients and whānau about all parts of end of life care, reassuring them, acknowledging and empowering them to take control of the journey that they are on together. I have sat with bereaved families quietly holding their hands and listened carefully to them. Providing them a safe environment and an opportunity to express their overwhelming grief and/or relief.

To sum up, and I am borrowing some of these words from Florence Nightingale, I believe that as a nurse, in my day-to-day practice I endeavour to make a difference by utilising the environment, the patient, family, and community to assist the patient to a dignified and peaceful death.