150 nurses receive Nurses’ Merit Award for outstanding service
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox
Nurses’ Merit Award recipients (from left) Varadhan Arivazhagi, Tan Bee Lei and Law Hwee Tian.
ST PHOTO: AZMI ATHNI
Follow topic:
SINGAPORE – At work, senior nurse manager Varadhan Arivazhagi has been slapped, kicked and pinched by individuals who show “expressive behaviour”.
The 47-year-old specialises in dementia care, working with residents of the Ren Ci @ Bukit Batok St. 52 nursing home who can get physically aggressive or shout at staff.
A resident once slapped her when she approached him to draw blood. Initially shocked, Ms Arivazhagi, known to her colleagues and residents as Ms Ariva, put on a “pleasant face” and explained that she was just trying to help him.
She said patience, empathy and compassion are the most important traits for nurses to have.
Ms Ariva was one of 150 recipients of the Nurses’ Merit Award
They were recognised for their outstanding performance and dedication to their profession.
The award’s recipients come from a variety of care settings: public healthcare institutions, community care, private hospitals and statutory boards.
They also get $1,000 and a medal to be worn as part of their uniform.
The resident who slapped Ms Ariva later apologised for his behaviour.
“Dementia patients live in the moment... I know they are not acting from their sound mind,” she said, adding that she did not take his actions to heart.
She said she extends this understanding approach to all her residents, and has learnt to balance her emotions at work.
After monitoring the more aggressive residents to understand the type, frequency and severity of their expressive behaviour, Ms Ariva and her team of nurses then work with other care professionals such as the psychosocial service or rehabilitation teams to customise a care plan for each resident.
Another award recipient was National Kidney Foundation nurse manager Tan Bee Lei, 39, who has worked in dialysis care for the past 12 years.
Being fluent in English, Mandarin, Malay and Hokkien helps her connect better with her 158 patients.
She said: “When I talk to them in their native language, (they) are more friendly... They are more willing to share (their problems) with me.”
This has helped Ms Tan facilitate a close relationship with her patients, allowing her to approach difficult end-of-life conversations with grace and sensitivity.
Nurse manager Tan Bee Lei treating a dialysis patient.
PHOTO: NKF
The first patient she had such a conversation with was an elderly Malay patient she has spent seven years caring for.
It was initially difficult to have these conversations in Malay, she said, but their rapport helped her to understand his goals and values, and to decide a course of action should his condition deteriorate.
“In Singapore... nobody would talk about dying... so you need to be tactful, to see if patients are willing to talk about it or not,” she said.
She used to get very emotional when patients chose not to continue with dialysis, but she has now learnt to respect their wishes.
Another award recipient was senior nurse manager Law Hwee Tian, 39, who oversees multiple critical units at Parkway East Hospital.
She was also heavily involved in the setting up of the hospital’s new Paediatric Urgent Care Centre, from selecting the tiling and wallpaper to training new nurses, and her meticulous attention to detail was credited for the centre’s smooth opening.
To better tailor the space to children, Ms Law and her team made it more colourful and designed a toy vending machine to keep the children busy with games and videos.
In 2021, she presented her team’s plan for reducing waiting times at the hospital’s accident and emergency (A&E) unit to the International Council of Nurses, a global federation that advocates for health policies and standards worldwide.
The new measures reduced the average waiting time at the A&E unit from 101 minutes to 65 minutes and received highly positive feedback from patients, earning her team the hospital’s internal service excellence award.
Dedicating the award to her family and colleagues, Ms Law said her boss has been “very, very, very supportive”, while her company has given her many opportunities over the years in both clinical and administrative areas.
