Assisted Living Volunteer Experience Reflection

Assisted Living Volunteer Experience Reflection Austina Burton Robert Frost, a famous American poet, wrote, â€Å"Somewhere ages and ages hence: Two roads diverged in a wood, and I I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference.† This is an excerpt from one of his most well-known poems, The Road Not Taken. It intends that in making this choice, one is trying to distinguish oneself from the rest of the world by taking the less traveled road, or the less popular decision. This indicates a person who is ready to take a chance, and to face a challenge. This is directly related to the foundation of The Davis Community, where I volunteered at this semester. In 1963, Champion McDowell Davis was a retired railroad executive. He began with a vision to create a positive living environment for aging men and women. This vision inspired him to transform his family’s former peanut plantation into, what is today a 50-acre not-for-profit community, where seniors choose to live (Davis, 2014). The Health Care Center, at The D avis Community, welcomed its first residents in 1966. In 2000, Champions Assisted Living was completed, which added another support service in the Davis Community. In 2010, the Rehabilitation and Wellness Pavilion was added, to provide seniors with a modern fitness center, outpatient therapies, and short-term inpatient care (Davis, 2014). Agency Information The part of the Davis Community I volunteered in was Champion’s Assisted Living. Its exact address is 1007 Porters Neck Rd, Wilmington, NC 28411. The Davis Community campus is located at Porters Neck, on a 50-acre campus (Davis, 2014). It is only a quarter of a mile from the Intracoastal Waterway. The campus is settled in a woodland location with luxury homes, yacht basins, and golf courses in close proximity. Nearby to the property is Plantation Village, an independent, not-for-profit residential community for seniors (Davis, 2014). The Davis Community is only 12 miles from Historic Downtown Wilmington, and the campus is within easy reach of the Wilmington International Airport and major roadways. Their phone number is 910-686-6462 (Davis, 2014). The person who was my supervisor was the activity director at Champions. Her name is Vicki Hardiman. My orientation was on January 24th, then I volunteered every Monday since January 27th. I skipped Monday, March 3rd because I was on spring break. Then my last day was on April 7th. What I Did During the orientation, I was welcomed in immediately. I was given a handbook and an application to fill out. There were other volunteers there for an orientation. At the end, we were given a tour of the building. On my first day I painted in the memory care unit, with the memory care patients. I helped a woman named Marilyn. The second day consisted of crafts and bingo, and, on my third day, there was a sing along group that came to perform, and then I helped with bingo. On the fourth day, I got to take control of my own activity because the staff was short-handed. I conducted a trivia game for half an hour, with the general population. The fifth day I volunteered consisted of craft time and bingo. On the sixth day, I attended craft time in memory care, and then I got to bake cookies. On the seventh day I volunteered, I got to watch a woman play the piano and sing, then I helped during bingo. The eighth day was really fun. I got to help Vicki do a trivia game, and then help with bin go. On my last day, I set up the recreation room for bingo, then helped get residents to the homeschooled children’s play on the second floor. Agency Structure Champions Assisted Living is a not-for-profit organization. The agency’s distinction of nonprofit is that decisions are guided by principle not profit (Davis, 2014). The people who make the decisions for the Davis Community is the Board of Directors. Then rules, regulations, and information is given to the staff to go bye (Davis, 2014). My supervisor was the Activity Director, so she was over the activity department for the assisted living home. Vicki had two people working under her, but she never treated them as such. The staff at Champions Assisted Living work as a team. There is a social worker who works at Champions Assisted Living. She has a Bachelor’s degree. Her job at Champions consists of conducting pre-residency assessments, and screening, of potential residents, and makes recommendations for appropriate level of residency. She is also responsible for evaluating the psychosocial, and activity of daily living needs of residents, and coordinating care and services as needed. She develops a care plan based on the resident’s needs, and works with an interdisciplinary team to communicate with residents and families before the plan of care is changed, or when there is a change in the resident’s condition. She provides individualized support to residents, and their families, through family meetings or support groups, and assists through the transition process to a higher level of care. Lastly, she monitors the needs of residents routinely. Many clients are served by Champions Assisted Living. The minimum age, that a resident may be, is 55 years old (Davis, 2014). Both males and females are welcome, as well as, all ethnicities. As far as the needs of the clients is concerned, there are caregivers and nurses that are assigned to specific halls on each level of the building, and there are a lot of services for each individual resident. When it comes to doing research, the most Champions does is keep medical records, and do checkups on each patient that is there. Champions provides a variety of services. When it comes to care services, Champions offers assisted living, skilled nursing care, rehabilitation and wellness, dementia care, respite care, and end of life care. Champions has a special care Alzheimer’s unit, and offers many amenities. A few of these are emergency call units in each bedroom and bathroom, clinic services open seven days a week, weekly housekeeping and daily tidying, restaurant-style dining, an in-house beauty salon/barber shop, a wide variety of activities, including weekly field trips to restaurants and museums, laundry services, pharmacy services, and psychological services (Davis, 2014). There are governmental policies that influence how Champions assisted Living operates. One of them is the policy about the minimum age of residents. To be eligible to be a resident at Champions Assisted Living, one must be 55 years old or older. Another policy is a no smoking policy in private or public areas indoors (Davis, 2014). This was set in place because some of the residents have oxygen tanks they carry around with them. You are not supposed to have an open flame around one, under any circumstance. Feelings over Experience My feeling about the experience was that, mainly, it was fun. It was definitely a memorable experience. I learned a lot while I was there, about myself, and the population I want to work with in the future. The volunteering I did at Champions was enjoyable. I got to spend a lot of time with the residents. Volunteering there was definitely worth it. The agency is a great community for the older adults to live out the rest of their lives. It has a good atmosphere, and the staff were nice. I could tell the staff was qualified for their jobs. Continue Services I would be willing to continue to volunteer at Champions Assisted Living. Patrick White, author of Three Uneasy Pieces, summed up the public’s feelings about the older adult population in his own opinion. I would like to believe in the myth that we grow wiser with age. Those of a middle generation, if charitable or sentimental, subscribe to the wisdom myth, while the callous see us as dispensable objects, like broken furniture or dead flowers. For the young, we scarcely exist unless we are unavoidable members of the same family, farting, slobbering, and perpetually mislaying teeth and bifocals. (White, 1988) I am one of the few â€Å"young† who still view old age as wisdom. Every day that I volunteered, I learned something new from one of the residents. Sometimes it was as simple as experiencing a kindness I never had before. Other times, it was listening to their life stories. Older people have encountered some amazing incidents in their journey of life. When they shared their life stories, it gave me an insight about lifestyle in their time. The life stories I was told were very insightful to why things are the way they are in the present time. Also, it is very interesting to know about their adventures and the places they travelled to. I would be willing to provide services to any agency, not just an assisted living facility. I believe volunteering is very important, because you get to learn about new agencies, it looks good on a resume, and one can gain much needed experience from it. Human Behavior in the Social Environment In terms of human behavior in the social environment, I observed a lot of activities at the agency regarding client issues. I did not see much aggressive behavior. The old ladies were mean sometimes, though, during bingo. Most of the residents were really sweet, and non-confrontational. I didn’t observe any resistance to activities of daily living care. I also did not observe any depression. Sometimes when I was there, some of the residents would not want to partake in the activities, such as board games or trivia time. On these occasions, the staff had to be extra suggestive to get them excited about the activities. I noticed that everyone in memory care was forgetful in some way. For example, they needed assistance with walking to places or they would get side tracked very easily. Every resident at Champions Assisted Living needed assistance in some way. Conclusion Overall, I enjoyed volunteering at Champions Assisted Living. I would consider volunteering here again. I loved working with the staff, and visiting with the residents. I had fun watching all the old ladies play bingo, and I liked helping them. Champions is a nice facility. The Davis community, in total, is great. The campus is set in a nice location. It is close to the ocean, as well as, downtown Wilmington. I am glad I chose to do my service learning at Champions Assisted Living. References The Davis Community: Assisted Living in Wilmington NC. (2014). Retrieved April 9, 2014, from http://www.thedaviscommunity.org/ White, P. (1988). Three uneasy pieces. London: Jonathan Cape.

Reflective Essay on Acutely ill Patient Mrs Smith

Reflective Essay on Acutely ill Patient Mrs Smith This essay will be a reflective essay focussing on a critical incident that took place whilst being at practice placement earlier in the year. A critical incident is defined as a learning technique that breaks an event down into its main components for the purpose of reflective analysis (Hoystonard, and Simpson, 2004) The essay will give a critical analysis of an event with an acutely ill adult and will use Gibbs model of reflection (1988) to do so. For the purpose of this essay, the patient will be referred to as Mrs Smith. The reflective model I have chosen to use is Gibbs model of reflection (1988). Gibbs model of reflection incorporates the following: description what happened?, feelings what were you feeling?, evaluation what was good or bad about the experience?, analysis what sense can be made of the situation?, conclusion what else could you have done?, and an action plan if the situation arises again what would you do?. The model will be applied to the essay to facilitate critical thought, relating theory to practice where the model allows. This incident occurred in the middle of my 10 week placement on the ward. My reason for using this critical incident is because of the impact that it had on me. I did not expect to see my mentor in a situation which she did not appear to be able to cope with, principally through lack of communication. Mrs Smith is a 46 year old lady suffering from acute myeloid leukaemia (AML). In order to provide treatment for this disease, it was decided that a Hickman line would be the most appropriate type of access for the patient, so this procedure was performed in theatre under sterile conditions. Mrs Smith was well enough to go home just a few hours after the procedure but started to feel unwell the following morning. She was experiencing extreme pain at the wound site so returned to hospital. When Mrs Smith returned to the ward it was clear this event was serious as her neck and chest were very red and inflamed looking and she was showing all the signs and symptoms of a severe infection, i.e. temperature of 38+C, heart rate greater than 90 beats per minute, respiratory rate greater than 20 breaths per minute and white blood cell count greater than 12,000. These combined symptoms are known as the Systemic Inflammatory Response Syndrome. This, in conjunction with a confirmed infection is kn own as Sepsis. My mentor and I immediately began the process of managing the infection, keeping Mrs Smith stable and preventing further deterioration in her condition. Although we managed to prevent Mrs Smith from progressing to septic shock, I felt the management of the situation could have been handled better by my mentor, enabling me to provide better care. This is the issue which I would like to reflect on. My thoughts and feelings towards this event were initially fear ,as I had not dealt with such a seriously ill patient before and I was worried that my mentor would expect more from me than I was capable of giving. I felt under pressure as things had to be done quickly and I did not want my mentor to think I was not capable in a critical situation. I also did not want the patient to feel that I was not able, and that she was not in safe hands. Durbin (2004) has said that critically ill patients may experience many unpleasant and frightening events, so the use of reassuring mannerisms and honest communication improves patient comfort. My mentor started to become flustered and was not staying calm which was what was needed in this situation. I felt that procedures were being rushed and not done as well as they could have been owing to the pressure of the situation. My mentor was trying to do everything herself and not communicating with either myself, the patient or other staff members, causing uncertainty and confusion. Houston (2009) states that keeping calm under pressure will enable you to make good decisions, have a better judgement, and be able to deal with patients and their families better. I was trying to think and plan ahead for Mrs Smiths care but knew I was not achieving this because of the lack of communication from my mentor. I wanted to ask my mentor to calm down as it was not helping the situation, and I imagined that it was making the patient feel worse and more anxious seeing this lack of control from the nursing staff who were supposed to be helping her. Mrs Smith just needed to be reassured and kept calm during this initial crucial hour, but I could see that we had not achieved this and she looked very worried. McCabe (2003) states that patient-centred communication is vital to encourage and support both nurse and patient in a critical situation and Radcliffe (2006) is a firm advocate of improving communication with patients . As blood cultures and urine samples were taken and the administering of antibiotics began, the patient eventually stabilised and vital signs began to improve which was a great relief as we both now felt more in control of the situation. It was not until then that my mentor began to deliver better care and I started to plan ahead for what would be needed next. Gillie and Thorman (2008) state that having a positive attitude will let you be more in control of a critical situation, and that being positive shows you have the strength to stand up to a negative situation. I did not go into this event with a positive attitude as I had never experienced this before and initially just felt panicked and under pressure. However, in future I will always have a positive attitude when going into a new and difficult situation as it will have a greater effect and better outcome for all involved. Mrs Smith was now being managed for sepsis and my mentor had removed the source of infection which was proven to be the Hickman line, and inserted a urinary catheter to monitor Mrs Smiths urinary output as she had not passed urine at all that day. She was given IV fluids to maintain her circulating volume and I continued to monitor her vital signs and assess Mrs Smiths mental state. The antibiotic therapy should have been started earlier, but owing to my mentor not contacting the doctor quickly enough, this delayed the patient being stabilised quicker. If my mentor had remained calmer then she would have been more focussed on what was a priority. Prioritising what has to be done first, is an essential skill nurses need in order to provide a good level of nursing care, Castledine (2002). I felt this was a negative aspect of my experience as I knew myself that we had not prioritised and that antibiotic therapy should be started shortly after diagnosis of sepsis to prevent further deter ioration. However, positive aspects of the experience were that I learned that I was calm under pressure and was able to reassure the patient when I did not think I could. Another positive aspect was that my mentor and I managed to control the sepsis before the patient went into septic shock. She was however, already showing signs of severe sepsis as her kidney function had altered. On looking back and analysing the situation, it was a worthwhile exercise as it was a good learning curve for me on how not to act in a critical situation. I did not want to be like my mentor who was flustered and panicking and therefore not thinking properly, as I saw how it affected the situation. Because of this critical incident occurring, I learnt valuable skills that I will use in other situations, should they arise. Skills such as, staying calm and not panicking, communicating with the patient to reassure them they will be ok and communicating with relatives as they need to know what is going on as well. Acting quickly under pressure, but not too quickly which may cause mistakes to happen. Also, very importantly, to ask for help when required. If this situation was to happen again, I feel I am more prepared and would not have the initial feeling of worry and fear, as I know what to expect and am capable of carrying out what may be asked of me. On making sense of the situation, I realise I am more confident now not only in this situation but other tasks that are asked of me in the practice placement. This incident began as what should have been a straightforward case of managing sepsis, but soon turned into a worrying case of possible severe sepsis and losing control of this situation all down to panic, lack of forward planning and lack of communication. Robson and Daniels (2008) discuss how the Sepsis Six Bundle could have been used in this situation, as it has been introduced in 2007 for cases exactly like this, reducing mortality rates by 25%. Six simple steps to be followed within the first hour and severe sepsis will be avoided. Mitchell et al (2004) looks at the changes made to the patients care if sepsis is managed well and how one of the roles of the nurse in this situation must be to keep the patient reassured as much as possible. Reassurance would have kept Mrs Smith from becoming more panicked and would have made the event slightly easier for myself and my mentor. Once the initial hour had passed and the management of the sepsis was under control, Mrs Smith became more stable and was relieved to have her pain under control. After a few days on a course of antibiotics, Mrs Smiths infection soon cleared. On reflection, I now know what was good and bad about this event and what to take from it. If a situation like this were to occur again, the first thing to apply would be a positive attitude leading to a more controlled and calmer management of a critical incident. Being more in control of the situation makes forward planning easier to do and better nursing care can be achieved. The patient would benefit greatly and a lot more quickly than a rushed, uncontrolled environment. Fewer mistakes would occur and simple tasks would not be missed as the nurse involved would be more focussed. Proper communication is a huge factor in how any incident turns out. Anderson (2009) states that breakdown in communication can cause negative outcomes, and warns about poor communication, especially with patients and their families. Lack of communication can lead to lack of trust and mean that any future communications could well be disregarded. Egan (2007) states that the face and body are very communicative and in this situation the patient was picking up my mentors uncertainty and panic eve n through her non-verbal communication, making her worried and ill at ease. McCabe and Timmons (2006) stress how important communication is in establishing rapport with the patient, again building up trust. Coulehan et al (2001) also note how communication, using empathy helps to establish a relationship with both patient and relatives. In a future situation I would ensure proper communication with all involved especially the patient, to put them at ease and reassure them that the staff knows what they are doing. Now that I have had this experience and learnt from it, I have gained a lot more confidence in how to better manage a patient in a similar situation, not just a critical incident. Being more confident lets the patient know that you are in control and can put their mind at ease, Penzien and Rains (2007). I would know not to show fear, as there was not anything to fear and the last thing the patient needed was to feel worried she was not in safe hands.

Diabetes :: essays research papers

Diabetes Mellitus is a disorder in which blood levels of glucose are abnormally high because the body doesn’t release or use insulin adequately. Diabetes Mellitus affects many organs of the body. It affects the blood vessels because Atherosclerotic plaque builds up and blocks large or medium-sized arteries in the heart, brain, and legs. The walls of small blood vessels are damaged so that the vessels do not transfer oxygen normally and may leak. This can lead to poor circulation and can hinder the healing of wounds, cause heart disease, stroke, gangrene of the feet and hands, and infections. The eyes are also affected. The small blood vessels of the retina become damaged leading to decreased night vision and ultimately blindness. Poor kidney function and kidney failure may also arise due to thickening of the blood vessels in the kidneys. Protein leaks into the urine and the blood is not filtered normally. Skin is greatly affected by diabetes Mellitus. There is poor blood flow to the skin which causes loss of feeling. Sores and deep infections called diabetic ulcers occur because of this.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Pregnancy is affected by diabetes Mellitus. Many changes that take place during pregnancy make controlling blood sugar more difficult for a woman who has diabetes. Changes in the levels and types of hormones produced during pregnancy can cause insulin resistance, increasing the body’s requirements for insulin. Poorly controlled diabetes may endanger the fetus as well as the woman. With proper adjustments in insulin the risks lessen. Diabetes increases a pregnant woman’s risk of infection, early labor, and high blood pressure caused by pregnancy. The baby of a diabetic woman may be unusually large at birth. The risk of birth defects is two times higher in babies of women who have diabetes. Most women who have diabetes can have vaginal deliveries. After birth, the babies are assessed carefully because they are at increased risk of developing breathing difficulties, low blood sugar and calcium levels, jaundice, and a high red blood cell count. These pro blems are temporary and can be treated.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Six percent of the United States population has some form of diabetes. Ten percent have type 1 form of the disease. Most people who have the disease develop it before age 30. Scientists believe that an environmental factor causes the immune system to destroy the insulin—producing cells in the pancreas. Some genetic link is most likely needed for this to happen.

The Importance of Successful Communication Essay -- Communication Proc

The importance in being able to effectively communicate with others is essential in our everyday lives. Although everyone participates in some process of communication, not everyone knows how to communicate well. Communication is a process involving the encoding and decoding of messages being sent and received by a source and receiver, respectively. Messages are sent through various channels, such as face-to-face interaction, electronic mail, text messages, and telephone. Depending upon the channel used to communicate a message, it may allow for the communication to be transactional or unilateral. All of this occurs within a certain context, and it may also include noise factors, such as cultural differences or physical distractions, that may disrupt the effectiveness of the message being communicated. The more knowledgeable one is of the multiple factors involved in the communication process, the better the chances of effective and efficient communication. In Organizational Behavior, John Schermerhorn et al believes that â€Å"it is useful to think of communication as a process of sending and receiving messages with attached meanings† (190). Mission Hospital is where I work, vast amounts of messages are sent and received daily, and depending on its availability, certain channels will be utilized. Due to the high volume of different messages, there is always the chance that some messages will be successful while others are not. An example of an unsuccessful message, where ...

The Symbolic Meaning of the Radio in The Enormous Radio Essay -- Enorm

The Symbolic Meaning of the Radio in The Enormous Radio  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚   Many authors use the personification of inanimate objects to symbolize the feelings and expressions of their characters. One example of this is in John Cheever’s short story, "The Enormous Radio." Although critics argue that the characteristics of the radio are the opposite of those of Jim and Irene Westcott, the radio actually reflects the couple’s life. Even though in the beginning of the story the Westcotts’ old radio is outdated and constantly malfunctioning, it has the same innocence and simplicity as the couple. The radio, being "an old instrument" (817), and the couple, resembling "statistical reports in college alumni bulletins" (817), are both average and uncomplicated. Neither Jim nor Irene "understood the mechanics of the radio" (817), just as the radio, a machine, did not understand the human music and language it transmitted. Eventually the couple’s life begins to fall apart. This happens as the old radio get worse and finally "the music [from the radio] faded away all together" (817). When the ...

Plant Imagery Throughout the Scarlet Letter

Honors American Lit. B The Scarlet Letter Pathway Paper – 694 wordsApril 23, 2013 Throughout The Scarlet Letter Nathaniel Hawthorne uses vegetation imagery in correlation with his ideas about sinful nature and god. When describing the prison in the very beginning of the novel, Hawthorne writes, â€Å"a grass-plot, much overgrown with†¦ such unsightly vegetation, which evidently found something congenial in the soil that had so early borne the black flower of civilized society, a prison† (45-46).Hawthorne uses the imagery of a black flower to depict the sinful nature of humans as it was inevitable that even in this new flourishing society the people there saw the need to build a prison. This vivid image also relates to the Puritan’s harsh view on sin in the community. Throughout the novel Hawthorne frequently criticizes the Puritan society, this being another example, â€Å"but the proprietor appeared already to have relinquished, as hopeless, the effort to perpetuate on this side of the Atlantic, in a hard soil and amid the close struggle for subsistence, the native English taste for ornamental gardening† (97).The description of the Governor’s ornamental garden shows the garden failing, as if the person caring for it had given up and realized that it was impossible to have the ornamental garden in Boston the way it was in England. This parallels Hawthorne’s beliefs about Puritan society in that their abstruse beliefs would not sustain in the new world they were creating, for god is depicted through nature demonstrating how Hawthorne feels god is looking down on the materialistic and frivolous ways of the Puritans.Later in the novel Chillingworth says, â€Å"wherefore not, since all the powers of nature call so earnestly for the confession of sin, that these black weeds have sprung up out of a buried heart, to make manifest an unspoken crime? † (119). Nature is being associated with god in this passage theref ore Hawthorne is saying that god calls for the confession of sin and goes on to say that god disapproves of a person that does not confess, thus the black weeds, mirroring sin, grow on the graves of those who cling to secrets.This idea is also repeated later in the novel, â€Å"and all this time, perchance, when poor Mr. Dimmesdale was thinking of his grave, he questioned with himself whether the grass would ever grow on it, because an accursed thing must there be buried! † (130). Sin is again depicted as lifelessness in this passage, for Dimmesdale has sinned, and not confessed; therefore he is concerned that god will reject him. Hawthorne clearly writes with a style of dark romanticism epitomized through his description of sin in the beginning of the novel as inexorable in every society.Hawthorne also reflects his religious views and those of his times period in the way he sees god and nature as one, similar to the ideas of Pantheism, a belief in the manifestation of god th rough nature. Hawthorne frequently links god to nature as seen when Hester calls to nature, as if calling to god, for forgiveness, â€Å"’Thou shalt forgive me! ’ cried Hester, flinging herself on the fallen leaves beside him† (175). While nature symbolizes sin, it also symbolizes the comforting and forgiving appearance of god.In relation to the bible, â€Å"†¦the yellow leaves will show no vestige of the white man’s tread† (178), the yellow leaves reference the scripture Isaiah 43:25, which reads, â€Å"I, even I, am he who blots out your transgressions, for my own sake, and remembers your sins no more† displaying the tie between nature and god both covering and forgetting sins; also tying into Hawthorne’s religious perspective in his writing. Nathaniel Hawthorne articulates his views on sin and god through his use of vegetation imagery throughout the scarlet letter; he continually uses dead and â€Å"black† imagery to al lude to sin and secrets.His use of dead vegetation implies that he believes confession is the relief of the burden of sin and the necessary action to obtain god’s approval and forgiveness. Hawthorne also represents god’s forgiveness through plant imagery; connecting god’s washing away of sin to the forest and nature washing away of sin. Fundamentally Hawthorne uses vegetation to convey his ideas on divinity and human sinful nature in The Scarlet Letter.

Surviving on a desert island

Surviving on a deserted tropical island Being stranded on a deserted tropical island is not ideal for most people, especially if you are alone. Although many people who end up in these situations get rescued, it is still important to know five essential tips to survive. Giving purpose to items often ignored and utilizing all available resources is vital. Water is an extremely important essential to surviving, water makes up more than two-thirds of our body weight and works in many different ways to maintain our bodys health, stabilize our metabolism, nd keeping digestion in order.A reason why the island you are stranded on is deserted might be because of the lack of fresh water. If you cannot find a stream nearby then look for coconuts, the milk inside is high in potassium and a variety of minerals. Although you cannot survive off of coconut milk, it will last you until the next rainfall. Collect as much rainwater as you can, because you never know when the next one will occur. Assum ing you cannot contact anyone from your cellphone because there is not a signal on the island, getting noticed is also extremely important. Building a fire that creates lots of smoke is recommended.Using dead and dry palm leaves creates a thicker more noticeable smoke. Collecting dry tinder from trees is helpful, especially hibiscus tree's, which are common on most Pacific islands. A fire is also important for cooking food, staying warm and keeping the insects away. As for food, fishing is an obvious go to. But remain cautious of the types of fish you eat. Stay away from fish with spikes or abnormal structures. Fish are a good source of omega-3 fatty acids, they reduce blood pressure; they are rich in protein, vitamin D, alcium and many minerals.If you have hunting skills you could also go hunting, there is likely to be boars on the island and a variety of other meaty animals. Building a shelter is vital; it needs to be done before dark. That way you do not have to go snooping throu gh a forest in the middle of the night in which you have no idea what lies ahead. Find a spot that provides protection from the wind, sunlight, and animals. Use shaped sticks for the frame and dead palm tree leaves for the roof. Search for a vine to tie together everything so it stays put.Put leaves in the inside of your hut to create a floor to rest on. Waiting patiently is very important. Keep yourself busy so you do not feel like you are going crazy. Go for a swim, work on building a safer shelter and explore the forest. You have plenty of time on your hands, so do as much as you can to make the time pass until you are rescued. References http://www. survivalskillstoday. com/Hot-Tip-How-to-Survive-on-a-Deserted-Island. html http://purpleslinky. com/humor/life/castaway-five-top-tips-to-survive-on-a-deserted- island/ surviving on a desert island By heavyflow