Yesterday was a long day. At
07.00 I caught the first plane out from Zagreb in Croatia, to Frankfurt, and then
onto Manchester Airport. I had a quick shower and change of clothes at the Bolton
House. Then it was driving up the road to the quintessential English Village of
Hornsby for afternoon tea, and wedding planning with youngest son and future
daughter-in-law and her parents. A few hours later it was up to the House in Scotland for a house
warming with friends who have just moved into their home in the village.
I was in Croatia at the invitation
of the Croatian Cardiac Nurses Congress, a member of the European Society of Cardiology.
I was to speak at their conference – my paper explored what ensuring
compassionate cardiac nursing care might involve – which I think involves bringing together the theoretical and practice
based knowledge nurses have, with patient experience knowledge and valuing these equally in
our relationships with patients, carers and our colleagues. A lively and collegiate discussion followed the presentation. It felt good to be in the company of such
committed and passionate colleagues.
I was also able to meet with the President
of the Croatian Nursing Council, Dragica Simunec, who has written much about the
development of nursing in Croatia. She was someone whose ambitions for the
future development of nursing were matched by her actions. I hope both our
Schools will be able to work towards achieving a better future for nurses in
both countries.
The final meeting of the trip was
with Professor Davor Milicic, Dean of the Medical School at the University of Zagreb.
The University which was founded in 1669, is one of the oldest University’s in
the world, and has over 52000 students studying programmes in 31 different faculties. The Medical School was founded in 1917, and amongst other programmes
has a full medical education programme which is taught entirely in English. The medical school is consistently in the top 10 medical schools world wide.
It was a wonderful experience from
the moment I arrived at Zagreb (which was much later than planned due to the
world renowned efficiency of Lufthansa Airlines) and entered my hotel room to find
a magnificent array of welcoming gifts, to the kindness of the night porter who
at 04.30 yesterday morning (03.30 GMT) sorted out a cup of tea for me while I waited for the taxi. Thanks too, to the patient who agreed I could watch her coronary angioplasty - a first time experience for me, and a profound one too. I
am very much looking forward to going back there, but right now I am looking
forward to turning my computer off and enjoying a long luxurious lay in this
morning!
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