RTÉ 2FM presenter reflects on the draining reality of his girlfriend’s job as a nurse

Carl Mullane took to Twitter to stand in support of the INMO strike.

On January 30, Irish nurses will take industrial action. Over 37,000 will go on strike for increased pay and better working conditions, in the hope of tackling job retention and staff shortage issues. If the dispute goes unresolved, there will be at least a further five dates of all-out strike throughout February. The wildly unfair and insensitive comments Leo Varadkar made before Christmas urging HSE staff to not take annual leave over the festive period and to operate at "full-whack" really put into perspective how underappreciated healthcare workers are. Indeed, the caregiving industries are known for being high-risk careers for burnout and yet the government are doing very little to support the most vital people in our workforce. RTÉ 2FM presenter Carl Mullane recently took to Twitter to offer some insights on how nursing can take its toll on people. He said: "I am not a nurse. But my girlfriend is and through her, I now have lots of friends who are nurses. So for what it's worth, from the outside looking in, this is what I gather it is like to be a nurse.

I am not a nurse. But my girlfriend is and through her, I now have lots of friends who are nurses. So for what it's worth, from the outside looking in, this is what I gather it is like to be a nurse. #NursesStrike #nurselife

— Carl Mullan (@CarlMullan) January 9, 2019

"Being a nurse means missing your kids opening their presents from Santa. It means being absent from the table while your family sit together for Christmas dinner. As a nurse you spend your day making Christmas special for those who can't be at home. "It means looking forward to meeting your mates after work, only to have your plans tossed aside when a patient crashes just as you're about to handover and finish your shift. "It means coming home with scratches and bruises on your arms from a patient who is so frightened they don't know how else to react. It means having all sorts of tests done if you get a needle stick injury. "It means being ready, any time, anywhere to act when you hear someone cry for help. It doesn't matter if you're on holidays or on a night out and off the clock. When nobody else knows what to do, everyone turns to you and hopes you can fix it. "It means coming home from work, exhausted, & having to keep to yourself what happened on the ward today because it's too upsetting to talk about. (When you live with a nurse, you know when something is wrong, but you learn to stop asking what happened. They will talk when ready) "It means calling your loved ones as you leave work after a particularly tough day because you need a voice on the other end to talk to. It doesn't matter what you talk about, just something to distract you from bursting into tears as you walk to your car. "It means getting up for work the following morning, brushing it all off and going at it again because you are a nurse, this is what you do and you love it. "I am not a nurse. I am not cut out to be a nurse but I am so glad that there are people selfless and brave enough to do the work that nurses do. I support our nurses in seeking for what is fair. They are heroes. I am proud to know a nurse." His sentiment espoused praise from fellow nurses who felt Carl represented their plight admirably.