Olivia Novak

This summer, I traveled to Hue, Vietnam to spend some time in a local hospital.

My placement was based in the pediatric department, neonatal ICU, and the labor and delivery ward.

I was astounded by the lack of adequate monitoring equipment available to even the most fragile patients.

Reliance on technology to assess and intervene was rarely an option.

As a result, my confidence in my ability to evaluate patients’ conditions without these relative luxuries grew.

I developed my nursing intuition through using my sight, hearing, touch, and smell.

There were other challenges, of course.

It was hot, there was culture shock, and nursing in a low-resource environment took getting used to.

But, thanks to the support and guidance of the Work the World staff, I got a lot from my experience.

I reflect, in meaningful ways, upon the lessons I learned during my time abroad.

As I prepare to graduate from nursing school this December, I feel more prepared to care effectively in an ethnically diverse environment.