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“When I get to the same age as (my residents), I would like somebody to treat me the way I treat others. To be very honest, I love what I do.”
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Juma Sowe moved to the United States from The Gambia in 1995. He has worked as a nursing assistant for over five years, and has been employed at Providence Mt. St. Vincent for three. In addition to his full-time position at the Mount, Juma also spends several hours each week working for a staffing agency called Professional Nursing. This second job sends him to a variety of long-term care facilities, hospitals, and homes, where he provides nursing assistant care. Recently married, Juma works the extra hours to support himself and his wife, who is going to school full-time, pursuing a degree in business management.
Asked about the rewards of working in his position, Juma replied:
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The good thing I like about it is being appreciated by the ones I am serving or I am helping. That makes me feel very good. If it wasn't for that, I wouldn't be there up to now!
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Juma is popular among the residents he works with, going out of his way to make himself available, and bringing their interactions to a level beyond routine care. When asked what particular things he feels he contributes a resident's experience at the end of life, he responded:
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First of all, I show them that I care. I try to have as much time as possible to be around that individual…giving them comfort. And comforting them could just be being around them. Sometimes you can have somebody dying, even though you talk to them and they don't respond, that doesn't mean you're not getting the message across. I mean, I'm glad that I'm serving, and that they appreciate what I'm offering.
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Juma feels that he has been blessed with a talent for putting residents at ease. He notes that he has had particular success in providing an extra degree of comfort that can make it easier for his residents to engage in conversation, eating, and sleeping—things that are often hard to come by for residents in a nursing facility.
However, Juma acknowledges that his job is not without stress. Like many nursing assistants, he is often torn between the demands of his supervisors, coworkers, and the residents and their families. Asked how he deals with the pressures of his job and the needs of the residents he cares for, he replied:
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I thank God for giving me a lot of patience, because the job can be very challenging sometimes! But I put myself into their shoes…and gain a lot by interacting with them.
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Beyond his natural talents, Juma agrees that educational opportunities, such as the PERT Program, have helped him become a stronger nursing assistant.
The PERT Program was very honest…I recommend having something like that more often. You've got so much going on—family interaction, all that stuff—it just makes me a stronger person. And I definitely thank you guys for having me, and for bringing that idea into effect. Definitely.
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