The week four of my internship rather began on a slow pace for me because I was sick for two days. However in the course of the week I participated in the usual activities of caring for patients in the ward, that is helping in taking care of their hygiene needs, feeding, positioning, monitoring vital signs etc.

I learnt about  RSV ( respiratory syncytial virus ). A patient had been admitted in the ward with this kind of virus and everybody that visits the patient including visitors and nurses had to wear a nose mask for safety. This got me asking questions about the virus, the symptoms, how one can contract such a virus, people who are more vulnerable and how to treat people with this kind of virus.

My mentor took time to educate me on this, Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a common respiratory virus that usually causes mild, cold-like symptoms. However, it can lead to more severe respiratory infections, particularly in infants, older adults, and people with weakened immune systems. RSV is highly contagious and spreads through respiratory droplets when an infected person coughs or sneezes. Symptoms of RSV infection may include coughing, sneezing, fever, wheezing, difficulty breathing, and in severe cases, pneumonia or bronchiolitis.

Treatment for RSV typically focuses on relieving symptoms, as there is no specific antiviral medication available for it.  However, in severe cases, particularly in infants or those with underlying health conditions, hospitalization and supportive care may be necessary.

Preventive measures such as frequent handwashing, avoiding close contact with sick individuals, and practicing good respiratory hygiene (covering coughs and sneezes) can help reduce the risk of RSV transmission. This explains why the use of nose mask, washing  and sanitising your hands with an alcohol based hand sanitiser was every crucial in this regard.

I started practising using the patient electronic system, I was tasked to take the vital signs of a good number of patients in the ward and update them in the patient electronic system.This was very successful. In the last week of the internship I look forwarding in practicing more of this documentations.