It all started with a sterile field....

I'm sure if you have been to college or trade school, then you had a professor or instructor that intimidated you like no other. For me, it was Mrs. Clark. I spent endless hours studying for her Med Surg exams and carefully taking notes during her lectures. Appearance wise, she seemed nothing unapproachable - Her smile was even kind! She seemed like the type of nurse that would stand toe to toe with a physician advocating for her patient, and I liked it. This also meant, she would be taking her job seriously - separating the dedicated and hardworking plucking the less motivated by way of natural selection - in order to preserve the quality of nurses working in the field. This dedication to her role as an instructor working to provide the community with new nurses who play a vital role in healthcare, forced us to view her demeanor as something similar to "the dragon lady."

I practiced and practiced, and I even practiced some more. I tried to comprehend the theory behind setting up and maintaining a sterile field. I just couldn't make it make sense to me, no matter how hard I tried. I consider myself an intelligent person, excelling in every academic class I ever had. However, lab practical and Mrs. Clark gave me anxiety, even when I was at home. I never could escape her voice in my head. I imagine her conscience sitting on my shoulder like the good angel/bad devil dressed in 50s decade nursing attire with the little hat, hose and white shoes calmly say in my ear "No Mamm, that's contamination" every time I violated the sterile field. The day finally came when I had to perform setting up and maintaining the sterile field of a surgical procedure. I was nervous, anxious and by the time I got everything set up - I had only one hand to work with as I had already contaminated with the other gloved hand. I knew I had failed without a doubt, so it was no surprise when I got my practical grade back, there was so much red ink on that paper I could barely see the font. I passed my class however and advanced to the second half of med surg.

On my second week of class, Mrs. Clark was lecturing on the history of nursing and how one lone nurse was responsible for saving countless lives and changing the face of healthcare as we know it - just by washing hands.

This is Florence Nightingale and she said "Wash your hands" ;)

I'm not sure how it didn't "click" before, but I remember standing in the lab absorbed in a procedure, when it just hit me. It didn't just hit me; it ran me over and then put it in reverse and ran me over again. Mrs. Clark looked at me, winked and said " You get it now don't you? It's always been about separating the clean from the dirty."

Wow...just like that, I was on a roll. I understood everything that we had been just "doing" and not comprehending and how it mattered in the ultimate scheme of things. I realized that this applies to more aspects in our lives than just that work. Sometimes, if the sterile equipment is even too close not just touching it may not looked soiled but the truth is you can't see how soiled it is with the naked eye. I imagine a soul can be just as contaminated as a sterile instrument if there is constant conflict and darkness exposed to it daily.

It has been almost 12 years since I was pinned and passed boards and I often think about Mrs. Clark's role in my life. If you've ever read the book, "the Five People You Meet in Heaven" then you understand the significance of my reference. Sometimes, even years down the road, the connection between an event or person that alters your life goes without being noticed. As I made the connection years ago, I am in awe of just how much a simple theory can change a person. Look at me now, who would have guessed Florence Nightingale and Mrs. Clark would have had such an influence on me.?! So much that I would enjoy making the world a cleaner place!