An intern’s thoughts following Jaga-Me nurses on home visits: Benjamin

Hi everyone, I am Benjamin, a marketing intern here at Jaga-Me.

I’ve had the opportunity to follow a Jaga-Me nurse on one of their home visits, and I was very grateful for this chance to learn and grow as an intern in the healthcare and community space, and to increase empathy as well as leave a social impact in our work here. It was a first-hand experience that allowed me to truly witness and understand how Jaga-Me helps our clients who require home nursing care from us. It was an eye-opening and humbling experience for me, that I would like to reflect on and share about.

Benjamin
Position: Marketing Ninja
Role: Everything under the umbrella of Online/ Offline marketing

I followed Ling to a Nasogastric tube insertion- a clinical procedure case. During the procedure, I remember seeing an unfamiliar side of Ling, the side when she interacts with patients. The patient that day was a stroke victim. She couldn’t express herself due to difficulty in speech and mobility functions. Yet, Ling didn’t really have any problems communicating with her. She would say things in Mandarin like “Ah ma, have you eaten?” or “I am going to insert the tube now okay?“. Even though the conversation was rather one-sided from a bystander’s point of view, Ling did not seem to have much trouble engaging the patient in conversation.

This made me realise that being a caregiver really requires some sort of special ability or attitude towards difficult situations. They require a certain compassion and caring side to them which makes them able to empathize and interact well with their patients on a more personal level. Watching Ling in action filled me with so much more respect for her profession and passion for nursing.

For our case, there was a first-timer Jaga-Me nurse on the ground and Ling was in charge of supervising her. I remember Ling guided the first-timer very patiently yet confidently. She was professional and gave her many pointers like “don’t push too hard”, “if it is painful, try the other side.” The way she communicated with the family as well as training the newcomer all at once really made everyone present feel assured. This is really important because our clients entrusted the care of their loved ones into our hands when they decided to use Jaga-me home care services, which is why we are responsible to provide the best care for them and to make them feel safe and supported in their caregiving journey.

After the home visit opportunity, I have a newfound respect for nurses and the work they do, because their job entails so much more than just having medical knowledge and technical skills. They are also required to have the right communication skills and sensitivity to their clients and families, in order for their presence to become a source of comfort for them. The littlest of words or actions can make a world of a difference. With this, I’m glad that Ling is here to for our Jaga Pros to look up to, to ensure that we deliver quality home care to everyone who needs our help.

Lastly, being able to witness this case also made me more appreciative of my grandparents, that they are alive and healthy. On hindsight, I feel rather blessed as I have been fortunate enough not to experience anything tragic in my family before. For instance, my grandma can still travel independently from her home at Bukit Panjang to my house via public transport, and the most treatment my grandparents ever needed was physiotherapy for rehabilitation after a knee surgery. This experience really taught me to treasure my family so much more.

Home care is all about recovering at home in your safe place surrounded by familiar faces. It is about comfort, and ease which I think is really essential to make a person feel safe and cared for in their most vulnerable moments. I’m grateful for the advent of decentralised healthcare technology in Singapore, and it is definitely the first step for healthcare to be more accessible to the general masses.

If you are a caregiver that requires respite care or long term home care for a loved one who requires more medical attention, we have an August promotion in celebration of National day SG52 for our care services, for just $20/hour (u.p. $25). For more information about the types of care services we provide, check out our website here, or call our clinical hotline at 8498 4598 to find out more about what kind of medical home care is most suitable for your family.

From our Jaga-Me family, to yours.