Effective Communication

In nursing school effective communication is really beaten into our brains. Nurses need to be able to communicate effectively with their patients, family members, and other healthcare members to provide safe and appropriate care.  My trip to New Orleans also provided me with many chances to see how therapeutic communication is important in everyday life also. The first example of good communication was before we even left for the trip. Our instructor opened up the lines of communication by creating a class blog, getting all the students phone numbers, and using email to communicate important dates and assignments with us. While on the trip I noticed our instructor in constant communication with tour guides, our chaperone, and students. This provided to be important to make sure all activities ran smoothly. At the last class gathering she once again opened up the lines of communication. She asked our opinions, what we liked about the trip, what we would change, and what we think should be removed.  She generally wanted to hear what we had to say which made many of us feel good about the conclusion of the class. I also experienced great communication when it came to my roommates. Because we were friends before the trip we wanted to make sure no drama ensued during the class.  We decided that if anyone became annoyed, upset or started to miss home we would talk to our roommates about it.  I also witnessed a few times where effective communication was not used. Some roommates started getting annoyed with each other and instead of discussing with each other they held it in and uncomfortable situations occurred between roommates. Another negative situation occurred that could have been avoided with proper communication.  While boarding the train the Amtrak woman was told there were twenty-two people in our group. She handed the first student in line 22 pieces a paper and told us to board. Now this was confusing because on the trip down we were given specific instructions on how to board the train and we had reserved seating; this unfortunately was not the case on the train home. Not knowing what to do, we did what we had done in the first trip and loaded from the back to the front.  The woman was not pleased with the situation and instructed all 22 of us this was wrong. Everyone grab their carry on luggage to prepare to move. As this was happening she shouted for us to stay put so everyone say back down.  She then proceeded to the back and said that four seats were reserved for staff (which was not marked in any way). Once again people started to get up only to be told to stay put again; confusing I know. She then returned with two pieces of paper but never said what the paper was for and walked away. At this point we felt everything was alright. Little did we know Amtrak police were being called because some of us were still sitting in employee seating because of being told to stay put. This situation could have easily been avoided if the woman had communicated from the beginning what was suppose to happen and what the pieces of paper were for. Instead she failed miserably at communication and caused a unwarranted scene which in returned upset 22 individuals.  All of the situations I encountered while on the trip really helped me understand the importance of therapeutic communication. 

Farewell

My favorite place in the French Quarter was the St. Louis Cathedral.  This place was my favorite place for many of different reasons. First, it was my favorite directional point when walking around. If I was to get turned around I would just have to find the Cathedral and head on that direction. I also liked the cathedral because of the history.  Like I had stayed in a previous post, the cathedral is the oldest operational cathedral in the United States. The main reason I liked the cathedral so much was because of its beauty. It was beautiful inside and out.  It held so much culture and life.  There was no way to be upset or in a bad mood when looking at the cathedral. I plan to go back to the cathedral one day with my family. I would advise anyone who is planning on visiting New Orleans to make time to go to the St. Louis cathedral. 

Though I was extremely excited to get home to my family, I was bummed that the trip was coming to an end.  It's really hard to pick one thing that was my favorite part of the city because we did so many things I enjoyed. If I had to pick just one thing it would be the Presbytere. It meant a lot to me to visit the museum that contained so much information about hurricane Katrina. I think it was my favorite part because I remember when it happened. I remember watching countless hours of the news in complete shock of what was transpiring in New Orleans. My favorite part of the trip was the time I spent at Villalobos.  This was my favorite part because I have watched the show numerous times and was able to see with my own eyes the work that happens there. It also opened my eyes to pit bulls, which before then I was deathly afraid them.  While we were there I learned that the people of New Orleans love their city. They have a burning fire deep within to make their city the best city it can be. People there are not restrained by time and schedules and they don't seem to really sweat the small stuff. They are beaming with culture and knowledge and are colorful in every aspect of life. I learned a couple of things about myself while I was there.  The first thing being I am pretty dull.  New Orleans is full of life, spunk, and color.  I live life by a schedule with most moments planned. I also learned that 8 days without my family is a little to much for me. I think about 5 days is my max. As much as I loved the city, I really am a country girl, the hustle and bustle of the tourist and citizens of the city was a little to much for me. I can't wait to go back but I would never want to live there. 

Cabildo and Presbytere

You can't say New Orleans without the thought of hurricane Katrina. Located in the French Quarter is the Presbytere. The Presbytere gave a history of hurricanes that had hit New Orleans and the structures that were built to protect the city. The Presbytere provided a lot of information about the hurricane that destroyed the city. After reading about the history of hurricanes and measures put in place to protect New Orleans from devestation, we turned the around the corner to the a timeline of hurricane Katrina. The timeline showed the story of evacuation. The main interstate heading into New Orleans was shut down and used for motorists to exit because of the traffic back up. Those who did not have the means to exit the city piled into the Superdome.  At 0900 on August 29th the eye of the hurricane was resting over the city. Part of the Superdome roof had been ripped away by the wind. Mass panic had raced through the thousands of civilians who were taking shelter there due to the worry of the dome collapsing. The same day the water busted the levees and started taking over the city. We listened to heartwretching stories of families running to their attics only being able to grab a loaf of bread that was floating by. People had to cut holes into their roofs or climb out of windows with the hopes of being rescued.  One of the most infuriating things about this horrible tragedy is many professionals had warned the city officials about the weaknessss of the levees and how easily they could be breached.  Another angering aspect of the situation was the lack of state and federal support the city received during the rescue efforts.  Employees of the nature services were mentioned to be the only agency that was resucing people and they did that without direction. In this time of despair there were stories that helped one regain their faith in humanity.  Healthcare professionals worked endlessly to care for their patients. Once the generators stopped working, either due to fuel running out or malfunction due to water damage, nurses took turns manually venting their ill patients.  At one facility, staff along with their patients, made banners out of bed linens to hang outside so people knew they were still there. Though I feel that the disaster wasn't handled properly by officials, both on the state and federal level, the heroic acts of other individuals prevailed. The citizens of the city vowed to make sure the city rebuilt and prevailed after hurricane Katrina. Thousands of volunteers throughout the United States went to New Orleans to volunteer. It's was hard to read the stories of those who were left behind. The museum left me feeling angry and heartbroken. 

The timeline

More of the timeline and pictures of people lining up to get into the Superdome. 

A statement from a writer Chicago Tribune

A man who had an apartment in government housing wrote about the days post Katrina 

More of the wall

The process of marking housing post Katrina 

Information about the fear and chaos that erupted 

Banner made by patients and nursing staff 

An explanation of the malfunctions

Garage door post Katrina 

A picture of some damage

After we visited the Presbytere we had a break before going to Cabildo.  For me the most interesting part was the information about the Battle of New Orleans. I liked this part of the museum for a couple different reasons. First, it was interesting to read about the influence of Andrew Jackson. I also enjoy the song so I wanted to read about the battle a little more closely. The small group I was walking with enjoyed the photo-op opportunity that was set up.  My absolute favorite part of Cabildo was the largest painting I have ever seen. The painting was of the battle but we were not allowed to take pictures.  Reading about the war was very interesting.  It really proved what I had already assumed, that people of New Orleans stand behind each other and their beliefs. 

Nicole participating in the battle

Ursula commanding the troops

I was attempting to be the captain but obviously failed

Our troop in battle 

Charge!!!!!!!!

My look of ut oh the troops are coming 

Villalobos Rescue Center- Pit Bulls and Paroles

I'm not sure if you have ever heard of the show Pit Bulls and Paroles but either way I will give you a quick summary of what it is. Villalobos is a rescue center for pit bulls. Not only is that amazing in itself but a majority of the employees are paroles. This institution gives second chances to pits and paroles. It originated in California but they relocated after hurricane Katrina.    As we were told, there were many stray animals after the hurricane due to owners dying or the animals being left behind.  Villalobos now have five buildings in the New Orleans area and takes all types of dogs now. Now that you know about the show and what they do, I'll tell you why I'm blogging about it.  I was given the opportunity to visit the main building.  I originally wanted to go for the dog walking but we weren't aware that the time was different on the weekend. Instead we went on a tour of the facility and got to meet many adorable dogs and puppies. At this particular building they house over 200 dogs. To be completely honest, I was terrified of pit bulls until I went there. The first dog I encounter was Rhino who is their most famous pit. If you asked me to describe Rhino in one word, it would have to be machine. This dog is built. He is short and muscular and terrified me when he came out. Then the unthinkable happened; he stretched out in front of us, tail wagging for us to scratch his back. At that point I was hooked.  It took less than thirty seconds for me to want pit bull; bad reputation or not. My heart strings were tugged even more once we were on the tour. Every dog was more beautiful and more playful than the next. All them had clever names like Dennis the Mence, Joan Jett, Tom Jones and my favorite Mr. Nibbles.  Mr. Nibbles was a multi-colored pit puppy. I reached down to play with him and he just wanted to chew on my hand. I would pull it away and he would playfully bark at me until I gave him my hand back. I couldn't leave the poor guy. I would have stayed there for hours playing with all the dogs they were housing. Overall it was one of the most amazing experiences I have had and can't wait to do it again! 

Halle, myself, Nicole, and Loretta waiting to go in. 

The famous Rhino

Everyone giving Rhino some love 

This pretty little girl was so sweet!

He was just patiently waiting for his turn.

This little guys wasn't suppose to have blankets. As you can tell he somehow steals them from his neighbor through the fence. Funny little guy.

Another blanket lover

The gentleman in the orange sweatshirt is Earl from the show.

This little guy was found on the interstate. I'm pretty sure he wanted to come home with me.

He just wanted to sleep and ignore us. 

My buddy Mr. Nibbles

There he is eating my finger.

Hallie loving on some doggies.

Look at her face! She was enjoying the petting.

We finished it up with these two playing through the fence. 

Girls Night In

As many already known, I have a couple very close friends who are also on this trip with me.  I was lucky enough to get the chance to room with two of them.  Nursing school has pulled us in many different directions, with Nicole being a semester behind us, Hallie going into Peds/OB from 361 and I went into complex.  Besides nursing school, we all have jobs (at the same hospital but different floors) and we all have children.  We haven't had much time for us to have any girl time this semester.  After one of our longer days, we decided to stay in and have a girls night.  We ordered take out, sat on the hotel floor and chit chatted.  We talked about life, nursing school, the infamous ATI situation, what we liked and disliked about New Orleans, and how we missed our families.  All three of us pulled out our computers, did our required blogs and just hung out once we were finished with dinner.  We also had visitors from some of the other rooms which was nice.  Nursing school is difficult in all aspects but I have been fortunate enough to have made some really good friends along the way.  The ones who keep me sane with their craziness and honesty.

Us just chillin on the hotel floor enjoying our take out. 

 

Museums

This is a picture of the graves.  This is so families have an easy way to see if their family member has been buried at Carville.

A list of the sisters who cares for the patients.  None of the staff at Carville contracted Hansen's Disease. 

Some of the equipment made for patients eith Hansen's to help make their activities of daily living easier. 

Wheelchair with hand cranks.

This is their body bag.

The currency that was made for the patients at Carville. 

One of the decorations for the Mardi Gras celebration at the facility. 

The Hansen’s Disease Museum is located in a secluded area on around 400 acres of land.  When we arrived we were taken into the museum where we watched a short movie about Hansen’s Disease and the purpose of Carville.  I learned so much interesting information while at the museum.  The first patient arrived at Carville in 1894 and the last patient left only a few months ago.  When the disease became a concern in the 1800’s, those who contracted the disease where placed in mandatory quarantine.  Individuals were taken away from their loved ones to be placed in Carville.  Some patients took pseudo names to remove the stigma of the disease for their families when there were admitted to Carville.  Family members were allowed to visit their quarantined family members as long as they were older than 16 years old.  There were no paved roads leading to the facility so it was difficult for visitors to come.  A majority of the patients were between the ages of 18-80.  In 1920, the federal government took over the facility.  The facility had their own currency made for multiple reasons.  One reason was because at the time they did not know how the disease spread so they did not want the money to get into the general public.  The other reason for their own currency was they did not want the patients to save enough money to escape from the facility.  Dapsone was found to treat Hansen’s Disease in 1920.  Though a treatment was found, patients were not allowed to leave the facility unless they had multiple negative test results for 12 consecutive months.  During the tour of the museum, I saw many interesting things that were invented to help those who had contracted Hansen’s Disease.  Though medicine has come a long way, we still use certain things that were in the museum.  The tour guides then took us on a vehicle tour of the area.  We witnessed the recreation area, the cemetery, the store, the infirmary, the prison, and the dormitories.  While driving area we heard the chanting of the army men (Carville is now a military base).  The tour left me feeling sad for the patients who were forced into quarantine, shunned by society and went through unimaginable testing to help find a cure such as hot temperature therapy. It opened my eyes to how patients may currently feel when they are admitted to the hospital and placed in isolation precautions.  I imagine they feel alone or isolated.  I need to remember my experience at the museum when I am caring for these individuals.  I think the museum was a very educational place. I would recommend that people go visit it, even if they are not involved in healthcare.  

After we left the Hansen’s Disease Museum, we went on a short adventure to the Whitney Plantation.  When we arrived at the plantation all students were given a badge with a story of a child who grew up in slavery.  My child was Hannah Kelly.  We started the tour in the church which was new to the plantation and was not there when the plantation housed slaves.  We walked around the plantation where we were able to see three memorials that were placed there to honor slaves.  On the memorials were stories of the children of slavery.  These children recounted the stories of slavery from what they remembered from their childhood.  We also got to walk into a house that was used by slaves.  These houses consisted of four rooms in which up to ten slaves would have to share.  We saw the kitchen, the blacksmiths area, and the horse and mule area.  We went into the main house where a lot of the painting had been restored to hence the experience.  The whole experience was a humbling one.  At one point in the tour, I was reading a story that was posted on a memorial.  I found myself feeling the hurt of the child and started to cry.  It is hard to imagine what life was like for the slaves.  Stories of birthing children at young ages, being beat for taking a biscuit and being separated from your parents because they had been sold. The plantation is something everyone should go visit especially in today's society where lines are being placed and races are being torn apart. I left the plantation with the question of why. Why would anyone every treat someone else this way?  Yes, it may have been the culture at the time but it obviously was not right and people, some white people knew it or they wouldn't have revolted against slavery. Thankfully we have people in the world who will stand up against the norm if it is wrong. 

The church that was placed on the plantation. 

The statues of the children of slavery 

The story of one of the children.

Tour guide and one of the memorials. 

 The second memorial.

The third memorial. 

Outside of the slave house.

The bed in the houses. 

The fireplace in the house. 

The area where the slaves were put before auction. 

Blacksmiths area. 

The masters home. Below are pictures of inside the home.