In the 1980's, the Pinoys invaded Roosevelt Island. Forty-one years ago, on this tiny island in the middle of the East River between Manhattan and Queens, the Filipino nurses started coming in earnest. In the 70’s, Filipino nurses were recruited for the two chronic care facilities on that little island. But in the 1980’s, the nursing shortage was at its worst. The Pinoy nurses were the city hospitals’ solution for the nursing crisis. With stars in our eyes and dreams in our hearts, we immigrated to the land of promise. After the first five Pinays came in 1982, there was an avalanche of nurses with about 100 nurses recruited from January to May of 1983 to work at Coler Memorial Hospital.
We are forever bonded by the experience of starting our
nursing career in the United States. We struggled to adapt to a new life and
culture. We had to learn the lingo, and I am almost certain that somebody else,
aside from me, did not know that a Q-tip is a cotton applicator. My four years at Coler started me on a good path, and my memories of my first years are forever in my heart.
Sept. 30, 2023- Coler Filipino Nurses Grand Reunion at
D’Haven Restaurant and Club.
And so we all came together to celebrate our beginnings, all
71 of us who answered the call from the organizers, the Glowing Gold Ladies.
The nurses of Coler Hospital (retired and not) converged from far and wide-
from California, Texas, Florida, and New Jersey. The out-of-towners brought
their little sunshine to cheer the rain-drenched New Yorkers.
The Origs from 1982 were there. Then, the different batches
of nurses who arrived in 1983 and beyond showed en force. So happy to reconnect
with those who started life in the United States as young, naive, and eager
nurses. A return to our wonder years, when life was challenging but simple.
Thank you to the Glowing Gold Ladies for organizing such a
massive and fun reunion. Thank you for the historical presentation about Coler,
as well as showing our old pictures. At first, it was difficult to remember the
names (getting old, you know) but the souvenir journal helped to clear the
cobwebs in our minds. Love seeing familiar faces light up with recognition.
Somehow, I am still Cerrudo for most.
And we got to celebrate our September birthdays again. I
wish to have been able to collect some nursing stories from this group with
their varied experiences. Collectively, we have a lifetime of memories to share.
But tonight was for being young again and just having a good time. We started
as colleagues, and we ended as a Coler family.
Oct. 1, 2023- Day 2 Coler Filipino Nurses picnic reunion
at Cunningham Park sponsored by the energetic Glowing Gold Ladies. I bet that
this dynamic group can do anything they set their minds to. Well, I have a
proposition to them that I will talk about in a new blog post soon (this one). I came only
for a short visit due to another appointment but I just wanted to bond again
over our shared experiences when we started at Coler. The food was great, the
music was infectious, and the camaraderie made this whole weekend such a
momentous occasion.
We’ve come a long way.
Look at how far we've come; no more fumbling neophytes but
confident and successful Pinoy and Pinay nurses. Back then, we were nervous, naïve,
and unsure about our future in this foreign land. Along the way, we forged our own paths, drawn
by our interests and passions. We defined our own successes and chased our own
rainbows. We stood on the shoulders of those who came before us, and we
extended our support to those who came after us.
If we wrote a letter to our 1983 selves, we probably would
have written several pages of advice. But we learned from our mistakes, and we
grew stronger from the trial of fire. I made a meme of my younger self as I
stood looking toward Manhattan, “Someday, you will retire. And you will know
that you were a bad-ass nurse who cared for her patients and her colleagues.”
Writing our Stories
Ever since I can remember, I was always writing. As a nurse,
my experiences since I started In Coler have given me a rich source of
inspiration, and creative ideas, but most importantly, writing was my personal
therapy. As a nurse educator, I learned that telling stories about my clinical
experiences made my lessons relatable, and easier to understand.
In 2017, a patient reached out to me. I didn’t know him at
all, but he read one of my blog posts. He wanted me to tell his story. He was
facing major surgery after an unfortunate complication from a previous
operation. He wrote, “I write to you to thank you for sharing all of your
stories to exemplify how important nurses are in the most dire of situations. I
would love to tell you of the many ways that the nurses made a difference in my
care. How they comforted me when I was anxious; when I just needed someone to
talk to.”
Our nursing stories do not have to be used only in
classrooms. Our stories (poignant and sad, humorous and satirical, emotional
and inspirational) can also be shared with the general public. Have we not
often despaired that nurses are underrepresented in news stories and movies?
According to the Gallup poll, Nursing is the most
trustworthy profession, but where is the hype about the impact of nursing?
After the hero-worship during the peak of the pandemic, the balloon had
deflated and healthcare workers, especially the nurses, are now even subjected
to workplace violence.
I wrote in the preface of my book ER Nurse: The Warrior
Within, “With my stories, I want to magnify the nurses’ voice, to define and
exemplify the resilience of the front liners, I believe that there is always
something in my stories that will resonate with any nurse or any caregiver. I
hope to inspire future nurses and to reassure current nurses that they make a
difference in somebody’s lives”.
As I was driving home before our grand reunion, I had an
epiphany. The nurses of Coler have so many stories to tell, enough to share
with the next generation of nurses who will rise up to the challenge of a new
life away from home. The narratives would be rich and compelling for future
nurses to learn from. Enough stories to fill another book, right?
The First Funny Years in America
http://jo-cerrudo.blogspot.com/2023/01/the-first-funny-years-in-america.html
My Firsts... as a Nurse in the U.S.
http://jcerrudocreations.blogspot.com/search/label/firsts
