Tuesday, February 17, 2009

Towel Cupcakes

Nursing cancer-stricken patients is never an easy task. You see them come and go everyday. At times, they may be hospitalized for weeks or even months undergoing chemotherapy. Per cycle of chemotherapy lasts from a day to a week or so. However, most patients have to stay for a longer period of time because they need daily observation of their total blood counts or due to complications from the chemotherapy or disease progression.

There are a number of patients who are admitted for further investigations and thereafter, diagnosed with leukemia. According to Kubler-Ross Five Stages of Grief, people allegedly go through this Five Stages of Grief when diagnosed with a terminal illness. The Five Stages of Grief is Denial, Anger, Bargaining, Depression and Acceptance. I’ve seen patients going through these stages but most of them did not end at the fifth stage. Mostly, I’ve seen them going through the cycle over and over again especially when the tough gets tougher.

I really feel helpless when I see what my patients have to go through. I can’t go to them to tell them everything is going to be okay… because it is NOT okay. I can’t even tell them that I understand how they feel because I will never be able to understand them fully because I can never be in their shoes.

I want to find ways to cheer them up during their stay in the hospital. I thought of buying small cakes or even bake cupcakes for them on their birthday but due to their low immune system, most of the patients are STRONGLY discouraged to buy outside and my baking skills….. no comment =P.

Thus, I am making these cupcakes from towels as gifts for those patients ‘celebrating’ their birthdays during their hospitalization. At least, they can use the towels even though they can’t eat their ‘birthday cupcake’. I’ve learned to fold the towels from a website which I googled and for the cupcake base, I used my Bigshot… simply loving this tool!!


Thank you for looking!!



1 comment:

Teng said...

Hey girl! So sweet of you leh! I guess being an Oncology nurse is really not easy... can totally understand what you mean... Some time you simply feels so helpless when facing a patient's misery right? Haiz... Well done! :)