Stay strong, stay together and support one another, says third-generation nurse 

High school aptitude tests weren’t the only thing that convinced Justin Beaver to become a Registered Nurse. Beaver is a third generation nurse, following in the steps of his parents and grandmother.

“My dad was an RN for 30 years and he was always a good role model for me, hearing the differences he was able to make” said Beaver, a member of UNA Local 120.

“My mom ended up doing her LPN at the same time I was doing my RN so we were actually able to take some courses together, which was quite a bit of fun,” he recalled. Beaver was a recipient of the Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions scholarship in 2010.

Beaver doesn’t often think about nursing as the family business but, he said, “it is cool when you look into family history and realize there has been a sort of generational impact in the field.”

He now works on the Detox Unit at the Chinook Regional Hospital in Lethbridge.

“It’s a good challenge in general to be able to work with different types of people and be able to work with them through both the hardest and the best times of their lives,” Beaver said of his current role.

“In my field, we deal a lot more with people when they are at their low, but even in the short window, between five to ten days, it’s kind of wild to watch how fast people change from being as down and out as they are to having resources and then being able to get back to a spot when they can start working on themselves and improve themselves,” he said. “It’s pretty rewarding to be honest.”

Mental health nursing left an impression on Beaver during his rotation as a student nurse at the Claresholm Centre for Mental Health & Addictions.

“Being able to sit and talk to people and have those conversations and not feel as rushed from the medical aspect of things and to be able to work through their problems and listen and spend some time with them,” he said, of the rewards of the kind of work he does each day. 

“I enjoy getting to know people more and getting to know where they come from what’s the reasoning behind where they’ve ended up,” he reflected.

Seeing that change in clients and being there for them, Beaver said, is what motivates him to continue nursing. “You just want to see the best for people”

While aware of the challenges facing Alberta’s health care system, including organizational restructuring that has resulted in sometimes chaotic scheduling or management changes, Beaver has a message of solidarity to share with fellow nurses during this Nurses Week.

“Stay strong, stay together and support one another as we navigate through these challenging times,” he said. “Be patient with yourself and others we go through this together and in our own individual experiences.”