Xu Can, 34, is a nurse who works in the intensive-care unit (ICU, 重症监护室) at a medical center in Xiangya Hospital. He takes care of patients in shifts (轮班) a week. But each shift is more than 12 hours, from 7 a. m. to around 7:30 p.m.
Xu conducts a full check of each patient, including pulse (脉搏), blood pressure and lab results. After that, he watches them for any changes that might happen during his shift. "We usually check in every 15 minutes to every hour, to see if there are any changes or if there's anything they need. It's our duty."
At around 11 a. m., Xu joins other medical group. It includes doctors, social workers and other nurses. They visit each patient. "We must be sure we're doing the right thing. We have someone else's life in our hands."
During Xu's shift, another job is to understand his patients. "Nurses with their patients for more than 12 hours a day," he says. "So you get to know them and how they react (作出反应) to certain things."
To end his shift, Xu has change-of-shift meeting with the night-shift nurse who will take his place.
"To be a great nurse, you need patience, understanding and a sense of responsibility." Xu says, "You need to love what you do. For the patients in the hospital, it's not their high moment in life. So, I try to get them to smile, at least during my shift.
①patience ②understanding ③a sense of responsibility ④love for work
