From Grade 10 dropout to now Nurse George

By ZACHERY PER
DROPPING out of Grade 10 in 1988 before spending the following year in the village did not dampen George Mandai’s spirit to be successful in life one day.
Today, he is a senior nurse at the emergency and critical care unit of the Sir Joseph Nombri Kundiawa General Hospital.
“Many times, patients and their relatives swear at us and threaten us but we always know how to handle them with care. When drunken people come to get treatment, they cause problems for us.”
George was born on June 16, 1966 to Munambo Mandai and dad Mandai Kaurgol Akmegi at Kupma village, Sinasina-Yongumugl district, Chimbu. Both have passed away. He is the youngest in a family of seven.
He married two women. One bore him three children and the other one child. They live at Ku village.
He started Grade One in 1978 at the Ku Primary School and completed Grade Six in 1983. He then attended the Muaina High School for Grade Seven.
An election-related tribal fight in 1987 forced him to stay out of school. He returned in 1988 to complete Grade 10.
But his poor academic grades forced him to stay in the village for the whole of 1989, learning the traditional skills of survival as a villager.

“ Many times, patients and their relatives swear at us and threaten us but we always know how to handle them with care. When drunken people come to get treatment, they cause problems for us.”

Then opportunity came a-knocking at his door in 1990 when he was advised to apply for a place at the Kundiawa School of Nursing. He spent two years at the Malaria Campus (Nursing School) on the south-western fringe of Kundiawa town.
He graduated on Jan 26, 1992, as a qualified nurse. His first posting was as a Tuberculosis (TB) leprosy attendant at the Kundiawa Hospital. The hospital was later moved from the Irpui’e section of Kundiawa town to its current location.
In 1993, he was sent to Goroka to do a six-month course as a laboratory assistant. He learnt new skills in that area. He continued working in the TB leprosy section for a while before being moved to the dispensary section.
In 1996, he attended a two-week pharmacy and dispensary training in Mt Hagen. When he returned, he was assigned to work in the pathology and disease control unit.
In 1998, he successfully applied for a position in the Emergency section where he has been working until today.
George loves his job and the challenges which come with it, especially the attitude of some patients.
“I enjoy my job (although) patients and relatives sometimes aggressively demand that we do what they want. No, we do not treat them as they want.”
Early this year, George was happy when his boss Dr Bobby Welsh recognised his good performance and rewarded him with a trip to Port Moresby.
“He allowed me to fly to Port Moresby for a five-day trip and return. I thank him for that.”
George loves interacting with people and sharing jokes with them during his break. It is part of his job – making people happy and keeping them satisfied.
The Grade 10 dropout from Ku village is not looking back.