Nursing: A Challenging Profession of Love

“The work that nurses do is personal and meaningful, and makes one become emotionally invested in patients’ lives and outcomes, a burden to carry for years,” says Gcinile Lukhele, a senior nurse at Ndzingeni Nazarene Clinic, a facility in Eswatini supported by the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation (EGPAF) with support from USAID under the ASPIRE Project.

Nurse Lukhele says that she chose nursing over other professions because of the passion she has for people and her personal conviction that she can better invest her time in taking care of someone sick. She is glad to have seen that happening in her slightly over a decade working as a nurse. 

Gcinile Lukhele, a senior nurse at Ndzingeni Nazarene Clinic, a facility in Eswatini supported by the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation (EGPAF) with support from USAID under the ASPIRE Project.

As Lukhele puts it, nurses can bring back hope to people who are already emotionally drained and see no value in life, and “this is what makes you feel good as a nurse.” 

As the world celebrates this year’s International Nurses Day, EGPAF acknowledges that nurses across the globe undergo a lot of challenges at both personal and professional levels, making it difficult for them to do their work the way they want to. 

“During the COVID-19 pandemic, I felt more challenged and had fever flow experiences,” says Nurse Lukhele, “I was less satisfied with my work, life, work performance, and well-being than before the pandemic. Actually, I felt emotionally drained.” 

 Nurse Lukhele says that to address these challenges, nurses, like all people, need a strong support system to help them address these challenges, avoid burnout, and perform their best professionally. 

And yet, Lukhele is still happy being a nurse as it gives her an opportunity to empower her clients and their families with knowledge that helps prevent diseases.  

“Being a nurse, my critical thinking skills are challenged—bringing improvement to my work, as some clients come to the facility with some information and need you to confirm whether it is true or false and clear all the myths they may behave as they come to the facility,” she says. 

Challenging her peers on this International Nurses Day, Lukhele says nurses should always value what they provide to the people as this is worth more than what they get back in return. 

“People may forget your name, but they will never forget how you made them feel,” she said, adding that as nurses they have the opportunity to heal the mind, soul, heart, and body of their clients hence the need for them to do good to clients regardless of their social status.