We started our day today with a lecture from a cardiac care/heart failure nurse. She talked a lot about the difference in healthcare and accessing care between Nigeria, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The lecture really showed how connected healthcare is across the globe. One thing that stayed with me was that she described the world as a “global village,” because all of the diseases and inequalities are in every country. What happens in one place can also happen in another, and as nurses, we have to be aware of that.

We also learned about cardiovascular disease and how heart disease and strokes are the leading causes of death worldwide. The percentages being 29.2% and 20.3%, respectively. Hearing those statistics from the World Health Organization (WHO) made it serious, because combined, that accounts for half of the total number of deaths. It was interesting to learn that there is a medicine that is quick-acting and can be used during heart attacks to save patients. But it is your lifestyle that matters more than not even getting to that point. One thing she kept repeating was that we can not always change who we are, but we can change how we live. And that in order to be good nurses, we have to be aware, so we can educate our patients on that as well. 

One of the main focuses, though, was healthcare inequalities, specifically in countries like Nigeria. We talked about how illness and diseases are underreported and that the limited access to preventative care leads to high presentation of different illnesses. During the lecture, there were seven pieces of paper distributed, each with a different statistic and how it compared between Nigeria and the UK/US. My group was mortality, and it said that there were 8-11% death rates in Nigeria compared to 5-7% in the UK/US, and then on top of that, with underreporting, the gap would be even bigger. In Nigeria and other developing countries, there are no emergency numbers like 999 (UK) or 991 (US). This lecture really made me realize how privileged some healthcare systems are compared to others. And it reminded me that being a nurse is never just about being able to treat the patient but also about awareness and education.

Another part of the day was a lecture that focused on ECGs and different kinds of cardiac monitoring. It was intimidating at first because I had to remember information from last year, but it ended up being really cool to go deeper into the conduction systems of the heart. During the lecture, my friend Juliana even got the opportunity to go to the front and act as the lecturer while she taught us about the electrical impulses of the heart. It made it more interactive and honestly made the information easier to understand because everyone was laughing and not afraid to ask questions. One thing that stood out to me from the presentation was that as a nurse, you might not always immediately know the exact cause of a problem, but you should know when something is wrong. He talked a lot about how you do not need to know the cause of an off ECG, but you need to be able to tell when something is off so you can advocate for your patient and get them treatment. I think this theory also applies to so many other parts of nursing. You have to be able to notice changes and act in a timely manner for your patients’ safety. We learned about so many parts of the heart, including the SA node, which, if it is not activated, the other systems can compensate, and heart blocks, which show up as a prolonged PR interval. 

But finally, it was time to leave and say goodbye to the people who had helped us through the Birmingham section of our trip. We said goodbye to Chinenye, who was our liaison for this trip, and set up our lectures and visits each day. She truly helped me remember that everyone will find their passion within nursing, and I will forever cherish her encouragement and the material she taught us. She is one of a kind, and I would take any opportunity to come back and see her again. 

After leaving BCU, we began our trip to London! We packed our suitcases and rode a bus for about three hours, and I think everyone fell asleep right away. Arriving here in London is so exciting because of how busy the city is, but it is strange knowing that our trip is beginning to come to an end. Today was the perfect end to our Birmingham adventure, and I can’t wait to see what tomorrow has to offer.