Stories from Healthcare Workers: Part II
The global pandemic of COVID-19 has brought Healthcare Workers from the safety of inside hospitals and offices to the forefront of the news. They are not only the most compassionate and selfless people, but also family, friends, and some are Buddhist. How has Buddhism influenced their perspective as a healthcare worker/student? Please join us in showing appreciating those that keep us healthy, by allowing those in the background to share their stories.
Mark Arima
He/Him/His
Dentistry Practitioner at a Private Practice in California
Orange County Buddhist Church
I grew up in Buddhism. Went to Buddhist church ever since I was little. When you are in healthcare, you want to help people. People want to give back. When they smile and when they are happy, it makes you happy. It’s like “wow! It’s a big change in their life!” Interdependence in dentistry. You gotta be flexible. You have to be open-minded and flexible with changing.
You have the hardest job. There’s a lot of unknown. I salute you for coming to work everyday and putting yourself in harms way.
Amanda Hamasaki
She/Her/Hers
School of Nursing at University of Portland
Seattle Buddhist Church
For as long as I can remember, I have always had a passion to go into healthcare. I even found a scrapbook of my kindergarten self, stating that “when I grow up, I want to be a nurse for babies”. With this, Buddhism has been one of the most prominent contributors in my identity as a nursing student. Nursing has shown to be a career in which I can truly put my Buddhist values to action. I have learned to care for all individuals, communities, and our society with loving kindness and Dana, otherwise known as selfless giving. This specific career in healthcare is so much more than treating illnesses with medicine. It is the true compassion, empathy, and open-mindedness that drew me to this field.
On another note, speaking to the current pandemic I would like to share one Buddhist value that I believe to be incredibly relevant during this time, which is impermanence. A concept so simple that we tend to glaze over the ideal without much thought. This horrendous virus will one day be a part of our history and to every healthcare worker on the front lines, your hard work does not go unnoticed.
Lindsey Yamane
She/Her/Hers
School of Optometry at University of California, Berkeley
Seattle Buddhist Church
I didn't really think about Buddhism influencing me as much until I self-reflected on it because since I've always been raised Buddhist, and most of my family is Buddhist, that sort of practice of Buddhist teachings has really influenced me. The whole aspect of having compassion and giving back, I think, has been one of the main reasons why I wanted to do optometry because you know a little while in undergrad, I considered majoring in business or something. But I didn't know as much as I could give back in that kind of way, compared to things like optometry and health care. Seeing how my family practices Buddhism and how my grandparents were so selfless, always wanting to go back volunteering, has really influenced me into also wanting to be like them. I don’t think I realized that until later, how that influenced how I came to be. Being able to volunteer within my own community and then also wanting to then take that compassion into my professional career. Looking at my undergrad studies, Buddhism teaches that “life is suffering.” Not in the meaning that it always has to be bad, but a reminder that it always is not going to be easy. If I am going through a hard time, or mentally exhausted or something, it’s part of the process. “Life is suffering” may not always apply to every situation, but realizing that everything is not going to go the way it needs to. Working through those challenges is important.
They have a lot on their plate. I really respect that they are able to do their job well, and be on the front line, even if people aren’t really social distancing or making their job any easier. They are still going and doing their job. So to that: “Thanks”
Tina Zumoto Ko
She/Her/Hers
Retired Registered Nurse and School District Nurse in Washington
Seattle Buddhist Church
I realized I really enjoy working with people, so I decided I wanted to become a nurse. I didn’t realize I was that Buddhist when I first started nursing. But when I was doing hospice nursing and dealing with a lot of end-of-life issues, having the goal to be a good death, it was a comfortable situation. I wasn’t afraid of it. My coworkers commented how nursing came so naturally with me. They struggled with their religious beliefs by letting someone die. They wanted to do everything they could to prevent it. They had a harder time with that. It was hard to see them die. We saw a lot of people die. A few times in the hospital, people had beliefs of people being less than, being abnormal, or less worthy of treatment. Because healthcare is expensive, and not everyone has access to that. So one time we had someone from the prison system who was able to get treatment, using federal money, that regular people without insurance would not have been able to afford. A few of my fellow nurses thought it was so unfair, and so they treated that patient pretty coldly - putting their feelings on him. We never knew what he was in for. He was just handcuffed while he was getting treated. Just kind of spreading Compassion. Doing what was comfortable for me, and hopefully, that helped influence my friends who I worked with. Trying to stay equal. Spreading Compassion. There’s a lot that goes on in people’s lives.
Be yourself. Stay yourself. Take time to take care of yourself. Take a break if you need it. You know what you are doing, it’s the right thing.
Seiju Terada
He/Him/His
Optometrist at Harvard Eye Associates
Orange County Buddhist Church
The opportunity to participate as a healthcare worker from the perspective of a Buddhist provides experiences that may be unique. I’m sure all healthcare workers have many altruistic reasons to choose their occupation to serve their community, to provide care and support to patients in need and to make a difference in a person’s life. Seeing patients routinely gives me a sense of family. It’s wonderful to see the “family” and to share our life stories. I begin to appreciate their stories of success and failure, happiness and sadness and we share each other’s stories, and enjoy the wonderful feeling of belonging to something beyond just our immediate family and circle of friends. Though I serve a purpose in providing healthcare, it is returned many times over in their appreciation, trust and friendship all adding to a feeling of interconnectedness. We wish our population of patients to be full of health and vitality. But unfortunately, we know about the impermanent nature of life. And what we can provide as caregivers is professional and compassionate care. Patients will become ill, loved ones will be lost, jobs and family issues may overcome them, but we can always show our compassion for their misfortunes and sadness. And finally, the one thing that Buddhism has taught me is to live a life of thankfulness. I am grateful for the opportunity provided me, and to reap the emotional rewards and satisfaction of knowing that I have improved the quality of a person’s life. Hopefully, I can share these Buddhist principles with the people I encounter.
