Eleven years have since passed and I have never regretted my decision to leave my teaching job to become a welfare officer at
I believe it is the strong relationships which I have built up over the years with them that enable me to manage them better. My cell phone is always by my bedside because sometimes the staff on duty would call at
I am married with four children and I am blessed to have the support of my wife when it comes to my work. My eldest child, aged 27, is a radiographer and the second, aged 25, is a staff nurse. The younger ones are aged 14 and 11 respectively. You can say that my older children were influenced by my second career. I tell my family stories about our residents and I often share with them my days at work. I sometimes consult my daughter, who is a staff nurse at the
Mr Mahmood: Does not think of the religion or race of the person he is helping. – MWS picture.
Dealing with the elderly sometimes requires us to act as if we are handling little children. For instance, we have one elderly woman who sometimes refuses to take her medication. Called to intervene, I would play a guessing game with her. I would put the medicine in one hand and ask her to guess which hand it was in and if she guessed wrongly she would take the medicine. It works all the time!
The most challenging part of my job is to deal with new residents who are very reserved. If a newcomer does not communicate with us we will not know whether he is sick or he needs medication. The challenge to me is, how to break the ice and make the person interact.
The aggressive ones are not a problem because they usually communicate their needs. It is those who are quiet that we are worried about because we do not know their history or even if they feel unwell.
My years here have made me a more relaxed person. I do not get stressed easily. I have also become more patient towards others. I now have a better understanding of the ageing process and I know about the many health problems that beset the elderly so that I can help them to cope or manage their illness. For example, I have seen the different stages of diabetes take their toll on a resident, Ah Boon (not his real name).
Ah Boon was one of our first able-bodied residents who was put on the Resident Employment Scheme as a hospital escort. Years after he developed diabetes, his leg had to be amputated and he is now wheelchair-bound. It is very sad. But when people visit us, I always tell them that Ah Boon is my best worker in
When I am rendering help to a person, I do not think of his religion or race. Helping is without borders. For me there is no such thing as retirement too. I will continue to serve at