May 21 - Ballito Umhl

A calling to care
The definition of a nurse, when you look it up, is ‘a person trained to care for the sick or
infirm, especially in a hospital’. Nurses are so much more than that, though. In honour
of International Nurses Day, we sat down with one of Ballito’s most accomplished and
trusted private nurse practitioners, Trish Idensohn.
Text: Leah Shone
At the frontline of patient care, both before and during the global pandemic,
nurses around the world deserve a moment of thanks. Not only for the work they
do and the challenges they face, but for the genuine care and compassion they
show their patients.
It’s is this compassion, Trish says, along with a desire to care for others and
an intrinsically altruistic outlook, that should be the driving force for anyone
deciding to pursue a career in nursing.
Having been a qualified nurse and midwife for more than 30 years, Trish certainly
walks the talk. As the founder of CliniCare in Ballito, Trish is a highly educated,
experienced nurse practitioner and has a string of qualifications behind her
name. She is an internationally-recognised advanced wound care specialist, as
well as tutor and lecturer at universities around South Africa and abroad.
At the heart of her personal mission as a nurse though, is simply a desire and a
calling to care for others. She reflects on the words of author Leo Buscaglia, who
said, “Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word,
a listening ear, an honest compliment or the smallest act of caring, all of which
have the potential to turn a life around.”
Trish’s own life was turned around when she lost her father at the age of 15. “I will
never forget the incredible care and kindness we were shown when my father
was in the ICU. Now, when I am in front of a patient, I think of myself ‘giving back’
for that.”Trish completed her basic training in 1984 and graduated from Grey’s
Hospital in Pietermaritzburg. She says the scope of nursing has advanced a lot
over the years, with nurses furthering their education and careers and becoming
nurse practitioners and specialists in
their fields. “Nurses are often called
on by doctors to give advice these
days, and we have the hands-on
experience,” says Trish.
Preventative health care is incredibly
important to nurses, just as it was to
the famous Florence Nightingale who
founded modern nursing and whose
birthday is used to mark International
Nurse’s Day on 12 May.
“The pandemic has been a whirlwind
and affected all of us so differently.
What we’ve realised though,” says
Trish, “is that the basic environmental
principals that affect our health, as
pointed out by Florence Nightingale
all those years ago, are still the
same. Although simple, they are
so applicable in the delivery of
healthcare in nursing practice and the
pandemic of today: pure water, pure
fresh air, light (especially sunlight),
cleanliness, drainage as well as a quiet
environment and attention to our
nutrition. The WHO defines health as,
‘a state of completely physical, mental
and social well-being and not merely
the absence of disease or infirmity.’ It’s
so important that we remember this.”
Although they have always been
dedicated hard workers, Trish believes
the pandemic has shown the world
how incredible nurses are at facing
a challenge head-on - and rising to
that challenge. “We are human and
we do cry,” she laughs, “but we have
incredible support from other nurses
and our industry as a whole. Not one
of my staff members, whether they
were working in hospital, at the clinic
or doing homecare, refused to do
their job or didn’t rise to the challenge
within our practice throughout this
pandemic and I’m incredibly proud of
their dedication.”
Details: CliniCare Medical Centre: 27
Jacqueline Drive, Ballito, 032 946 1826
12 Get It • Ballito Umhlanga May 2021