Reading Skills for Healthcare Workers

One Friday morning, Milo and Emma talked to each other about the work week. On Monday, one of Emma’s residents needed to remain in bed after surgery, so Emma brought lunch to the resident’s room, positioned him so that he wouldn’t choke while eating, and helped him with the meal. Milo told Emma that one of Milo’s residents got some food stuck in her throat. The resident kept coughing and thankfully, after she drank some water, she was fine.

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On Tuesday, Emma dealt with an elderly resident who was feeling dizzy and tried to stand up but then fell back onto his bed. Fortunately, Emma entered the room in time to assist him. On Wednesday, one of Emma’s residents wanted to wear a favorite red dress because it reminded her of dancing with her husband, but she had worn it on both Monday and Tuesday, so it needed to be washed. The resident began to cry when Emma told her she needed to wear something else, but Emma was able to calm her down.

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Something similar happened to Milo when one of his residents chose a shirt that had fit him a couple months ago, but because he lost a lot of weight recently, the shirt fit too loosely and didn’t look right. Also, it was getting caught on his chair when he stood up.  Milo suggested that he choose a different shirt, and the resident was comfortable with that suggestion.

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Both Emma and Milo had residents that became sick during the week. One of Milo’s residents had the flu and another had a bad sore throat. When giving a bath to a resident, Emma noticed serious bed sores on both of the resident’s heels, so she told the supervising nurse right away because bed sores can get much worse very quickly.

Though the week had been busy, both Emma and Milo felt they had worked hard and made life a bit better for their residents. They both looked forward to the weekend off.