This Aged Care Worker Shared The Reality Of Her Job In A Powerful Facebook Post

There are some professions that are incredibly important yet do not often receive adequate recognition for the hard work they require. Aged care workers perform vital tasks, taking care of some of the most vulnerable individuals, and are often overlooked for this. 

One aged care worker took to Facebook to share the harsh reality of her job. Rather than retype or summarize the post, we have chosen to share it in its entirety to preserve the power of the original message. It is incredibly important for people to discuss their jobs without anyone diluting or muting their experiences. Read the letter below.

The viral post, written by Tahlia Stagg, was titled "The Aged Care Worker - A Day in the Life of"

"It's 6:30 AM, and my shift begins. Residents' breakfast time is 8 AM. That's 90 minutes. By 8 AM, eleven of my 24 residents expect to be sitting in the dining room, washed, dressed, and ready for their meal. Let's break that down. That's 8 minutes and 18 seconds per resident! In 8 minutes, I must use a lifter to transfer each resident from their bed to the toilet, from the toilet to the shower, wash them, shave them, dry them, moisturize them, dress them, comb their hair, brush their teeth, apply hearing aids, dress their wounds, transfer them to a wheelchair, tidy their room, make their bed, empty their bin, and wheel them to the dining room. 8 minutes!"Tahlia Stagg on Facebook "Meanwhile, in their bedrooms, the other 13 residents lie waiting for their meal. These residents cannot walk, cannot communicate, and cannot feed themselves. They require spoon feeding, can only drink through a straw, and have difficulty swallowing. These residents have not yet been attended to since the shift began because the residents with verbal and physical behaviors take priority. They have not yet received care because, in a ward of 24 high-care residents, 4 nurses can only do so much."

9:00 AM

"Now it's 9 AM, also known as code brown o'clock. 24 residents, and you better believe they all want the toilet at once. As one nurse does the medication round and another collects the breakfast trays, the remaining two are running, answering multiple buzzers, and toileting several residents at a time. One resident is incontinent. You've already showered her this morning, but as you follow the trail of feces from the dining room to her bedroom, you realize she will need another shower, and pronto!It's now 9:30 AM. You're supposed to take your tea break. But you don't. Or you do, and feel guilty as you scull your cup of cold tea and think about the 13 residents still lying in bed in last night's pad, unable to buzz for assistance.Back to it now. You didn't get to use the toilet; there wasn't time.It's 9:40 AM. All personal care ideally should be completed by 11 AM, leaving just enough time to start preparing for lunch. That leaves 6 minutes and 15 seconds per resident to attend to their personal hygiene. This, of course, is the best-case scenario, but throw in a fall, a broken hip, a skin tear, a death, a vomit, an upset visitor, or an accidental poop in the pants, and the time left for each resident is shortened."

11:00 AM and Still No Time for All-Important Paperwork

"It's now 11 AM. You have not done a single note of paperwork. You'll be in trouble for that; paperwork = funding! You try to type your way through chart after chart, but the buzzers never stop, and the phone is always ringing. The activity hall calls to tell you your residents have finished playing bingo and are ready to be picked up.The hairdresser calls from the office asking you to bring residents over for their appointments. And somewhere amongst it all, the nurses are trying to fit in their lunch breaks."

Lunchtime: For the Residents, Not the Staff.

"It's 12 PM now. Lunchtime. One nurse delivers yet another round of meds, one is feeding the bedridden residents, while the third is supervising those in the dining room. Two residents are fighting over who got the most ice cream; another is choking on her drink because she refuses to have thickened fluids. Another is taking the chewed-up food from her mouth and feeding it to a fellow resident who is asleep at the table with her mouth open.You still haven't gotten to the paperwork." "It's 12:30 PM now, and so begins the busiest hour of the shift. 24 residents all need to be toileted, repositioned, checked for pressure sores, or returned to bed. An hour is not enough to complete this round, but it has to be done. Two staff are going home at 1 PM, and the other at 2 PM. After that, you're on your own."

It's Almost Time to Leave (But Not Until the Paperwork Is Done)

"Now it's 2:45 PM. You should be clocking off in 15 minutes! But who are you kidding? You can't leave until the paperwork's done.It's 3:20 PM. You're in overtime. Unpaid overtime."

Families Often Don't Have the Same Compassion for the Overworked Workers and Only See Such a Small Section of the Day.

"As you type your notes, a resident is spilling his drink straight down the front of his pants. You don't see this, but his family does. They've arrived (yep, right now) for a visit. They do not see the spilled cup under the table, just the wet patch on his pants. They come charging in to speak to you, using a stern and unimpressed tone. They lecture you about how it is not dignified for their father to be on display with soiled pants. You explain that you are sorry and that it is, in fact, only water, but of course, you will get him changed right away.The family did not see their father spit on you at 7 AM as you showered him. They didn't see you massage Dencorub gently into his sore knees to soothe the pain. They didn't see you pick a flower to sit on his lap and cheer him up during breakfast. They didn't see you encourage him to eat his lunch when he was reluctant to do so. They only saw this: this patch of water on his pants. And now the world is ending."

SAY IT LOUDER

"LET ME SAY THIS LOUD FOR THE PEOPLE IN THE BACK!The media will have you believe that aged care workers are negligent, incompetent, and lacking in skills. Yes, there are a few stinkers in the bunch, and that is 100% not okay. But you don't see what goes on behind closed doors, so you are forced to believe only what the media portrays.They don't see us hold the hands of a man with Parkinson's to ease his shakes just for a moment. They don't see us sing quietly to their favorite old song as we feed them breakfast. They don't see us cry as we comb the hair of a resident who has just passed away, trying to make them look presentable for their family. They don't see us go home as a broken, shattered human who has seen more in one day than a lot of people will see ever!We are working harder than you know. And feeling like your best is just not good enough, sucks! We are not incapable; we are pressed for time! You only hear about the negatives, but please believe that the majority of us have good hearts and look after and love your family members as our own 💖Sincerely,an exhausted care worker xx**This is NOT a dig at my workplace; this is the reality of aged care. I'm fortunate to work in the best facility in the area, with the most amazing staff you will find, and while it's the hardest job I've ever had and probably will ever have, I love my job!"

The original post can be found in the words of Dr. Helen Fisher, a biological anthropologist who states, "The emotional labor involved in caregiving is profound and often underappreciated." This sentiment echoes the experiences shared by many aged care workers who navigate complex emotional landscapes daily. For further insights on the challenges faced in caregiving roles, visit Dr. Sue Johnson, a pioneer in couples therapy, who emphasizes the importance of emotional support in caregiving environments.

Tahlia's post has been shared thousands of times, and the comments section is full of support.

What do you think? Has this changed the way you think about overworked health professionals?

Pexels