Linda Garrett -- Bent but Not Broken

Q – In Fall of 2005, after Hurricane Katrina you volunteered with the American Red Cross. Have you had any other volunteer disaster nursing experiences? Are you still involved with the ARC?
Linda: Yes I’m still involved with the ARC as time permits. What amazing people they are. As for other disaster nursing, I have been a member of our county’s School Crisis Response Team. After a school experiences a crisis (death of a student or teacher, accident, suicide, etc.), the team goes to the school to support (counseling, referrals) the students and faculty in order to return the school and community to some sort of equilibrium. While it is not a disaster in the usual sense, for that particular school and community, it IS a disaster. In addition, I conduct suicide prevention/awareness workshops in schools – hoping to avert another school’s disaster.
Q - Is nursing your first career? Why did you choose nursing? What are some of the types of nursing you have done? Linda: No, nursing is not my first career. For many years I worked at a small business newsletter. After I turned a certain ‘milestone’ age, I decided to go to nursing school, something I had always wanted to do. We had a psych rotation and I knew mental health nursing would be my specialty. After graduation, my first job was on an inpatient child and adolescent psychiatric unit, a short-term crisis intervention service. I worked full time on that unit for 6 years and am still working part time on that very same unit. I am in my 11th year as a School Nurse in an elementary school in southern NJ. In many ways, working in child psych has been excellent preparation for school nursing.
Q – Other than your story, Bent But Not Broken what other stories/articles have you had published? Do you have plans to further your work as an author? I’ve never had anything else published prior to my story in TO THE RESCUE.
Linda: I recently submitted a very short article on adolescent suicide to a legal newsletter geared toward teachers.
Q – You end Bent But Not Broken, wondering. “How would I have reacted to losing absolutely everything?” Do you answer this question differently now, after your volunteer experience than you would have before? How so? Linda: At this point, at this age, I feel resilient….but have not been (and would wish not to be!) tested. If that time comes, I will always remember my experience with the folks I met in Mississippi and other survivors of other disasters.