Leanne Doyle

 

Blog 1:

So I have settled in quite well! I’m very happy with my accommodation and the girls I’m sharing with. In the apartment there is a bathroom with a shower, a kitchenette with the necessities, two single beds and a sofa bed. We are only a five minute walk to the city centre, we only have to walk across the bridge and we are in the centre which is so handy! Our transport for work is a bus and the bus stop is only around the corner which is so convenient! The bus journey is about 40 minutes.

Blog 2:

So to be quite honest I’m really not happy with the nursing home. I don’t like how the treat the residents, it very different to Ireland. The reef the residents around like they’re teddy bears, they show no empathy towards them which is so disappointing. I haven’t been able to showcase the skills I have learned in college. I show the residents as much empathy as I possibly can. The staff aren’t that pleasant either. I always have a smile on my face and hold the residents hands to show compassion. I hate leaving knowing how the residents are being treated.

Blog 3:

I have adapted to the culture but obviously the language barrier can be an issue, I have used Duolingo and Google translate and I try my best to pronounce the words and communicate with the locals. I have noticed the Spanish can be quite angry sometimes. For the staff in the nursing home they aren’t very approachable. I try and help and they don’t let me, I have been left standing there a few times. We heard from another student doing Erasmus that they were giving out about us saying “we stand around doing nothing, why don’t we pick up a mop and start cleaning” we are student nurses not cleaners.

Blog 4:

Other than the workplace I am really enjoying my time in Malaga. I love exploring the city and seeing what it has to offer, I really enjoyed the boat trip! I loved Nerja also, it has a very different atmosphere to Malaga itself, it’s a lot calmer but there is not a lot to do there. I enjoy the trips and exploring!

Blog 5:

This trip has made me realise that even though I’m a student I know what is right and wrong in a workplace and I know my worth. I really was not happy with the nursing home and how they do things and that I didn’t get to show anything I learned but the one thing I did show was empathy. Other than that I have really enjoyed this trip and I have made some life long friends. One thing I recommend is that the college be more involved in picking the workplaces and they read into them before the students themselves. For the students I’d say to try everything and just embrace it because threes weeks absolutely fly by!

 

 

 

Signing off for now,

Leanne