During Nursing Week, which is celebrated every year throughout Canada during the week of Florence Nightingale’s May 12th birthday, we recognize the year-round devotion and achievements of the Montreal Children’s Hospital's 650 nurses who contribute enormously to the well-being of our patients and their families.
Eloisa Binder
“Nursing is a great field because there are many opportunities to keep learning,” says Eloisa Binder. Eloisa previously worked in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (9C) for 15 years before making the transition to Complex Care Services after completing her bachelor’s degree in 2006.
Eloisa says the best part of her job is interacting with patients and their families, especially if she can help them feel less stressed by holding their child or smiling. “Trying to do a little something to make their lives easier is what I like about being a nurse here,” she says. What’s more, Eloisa says kids are easy to work with. “They’re pretty honest,” she explains, “If they like or don’t like something, they’ll tell you and they don’t hold it against you!”
Outside of work, Eloisa likes trying new things. Last year, she took sailing lessons, which she never thought she would do. She now owns a sailing boat with her husband.
Sabrina Raschella
“It was always in me to try and help people,” says Sabrina Raschella about the reason she chose to become a nurse. “My grandmother was a caregiver and I wanted to be like her and make it a profession.”
In her current role in the Psychiatry Unit, Sabrina works closely with a multidisciplinary team of nurses, social workers, psychiatrists and psychologists. “We work together as a team to help stabilize and assess patients on the unit and make sure they’re stable enough to go back home,” she explains.
Having always been drawn to the study of how the mind works, Sabrina says she has found her niche in the field of pediatric psychiatry where she feels she can make a difference. “I wanted to come to work in the field mental health to raise awareness about mental illness and try to remove some of the stigma attached to it,” she says.
Badung Ngo
"We administer treatments and monitor side effects; we’re the closest link with the patient," says Badung when asked about his work. With a background in health science, a career in nursing allows him to combine his passion for biology and his desire to serve the public.
Badung greets families of children who have been diagnosed with cancer, a blood or immune disease when they arrive on the unit. The treatment for these illnesses can last from eight months to three years.
The most rewarding part of Badung’s work is when a patient finishes treatment. "I am always very moved when it comes time to say goodbye, but at the same time, it’s such a relief for everyone," he says. Kids can go back to being kids after hospitalization, and he admits he often doesn’t recognize patients who come to visit years later, only their parents.