Story and photos by Bethany Frederickson
Students in Paula Montgomery’s Vocational Nursing I class learned an appreciation for the handicapped on Nov. 2. These students became handicapped— and restricted with their handicap—for a short while.
Arms and legs were put into splints, knees were bound together, ears were plugged, eyes were covered, and every student had on a pair of latex gloves for loss of sensitivity. Cotton balls were taped to eyeglasses so that students could only see out of the edges—like cataract patients. There were also students who had to become weak on one side of their body as if they had a stroke.
“We’re doing this so students will understand what their patients are going through,” said Montgomery. “It’s quite a learning experience.”
Each “patient” had a nurse to assist him or her, the nurses becoming just as frustrated as the patients. Cliff English took his patient, Ronnie Norris, to buy a cup of coffee.
“We made sure the lady behind the counter gave him coins for change instead of bills,” said English. Due to Norris’ lack of sensitivity it was difficult to handle the money. Vicky Herzog found it difficult to apply the piano, something she is usually good at.
“Blind” students noticed how bad their sense of direction had become but their sense of smell had improved. Nurses learned they could not use facial expressions or point or nod to their blind patients. It was hard to carry on a normal conversation, they said.
Students with their legs and arms in splints or bound together knees bound together found simple things like brushing their teeth, standing up, or making a phone call difficult, not to mention frustrating.
Every student got a lot of stares and odd looks, but they said they also got something better out of the experience—an appreciation for the handicapped.
