Nurses across our country are being celebrated this week. This is National Nurses Week.

One of those nurses is Barb Klassen of Steinbach. Klassen has held that title for 35 years but she says her opening came when she was 16 years old. It was then that someone "took a risk" and hired her to be an evening and weekend receptionist at Bethesda Hospital. She was able to work alongside an emergency nurse and emergency doctor and soon became ward clerk on the surgical ward.

"I just really watched what they were doing and loved the atmosphere and said to myself 'I can do this,'" recalls Klassen. "Next thing I knew I was applying and going to nurses training."

Klassen says the healthcare environment is very busy right now and the challenge is to pledge each day to be the best nurse possible to her patients and the best mentor possible to her colleagues. Klassen says she enters every shift with that kind of mindset and hopes it is a successful day.

According to Klassen, being a nurse is never boring. As an emergency room nurse, Klassen says she never knows who will walk through the door or what kind of day it will be.

"The best thing about nursing is you learn something new every day," she says. "After thirty-five years I can come to work and I'm still learning something new."

Klassen says she always tells new nurses that if you can't accept change, then nursing will be very difficult because it is an ever-changing environment.

She notes as a nurse she has the privilege of being able to care for patients and their families. Klassen adds nurses have to develop a trusting relationship with their patients and their families within minutes of meeting.

"Who gets that privilege?" asks Klassen. "It's amazing."

Klassen says there are certainly moments that stand out from the job. She says leaving a shift on a day when you actually saved someone's life is an indescribable feeling. She recalls one gentleman in particular who years after being revived, would refer to her as his angel because she was the first person he saw when he opened his eyes.

But she says there are also difficult times and it's on those days you hope you are able to support people in their loss.

Klassen says nursing is about teamwork. She calls it a cohesive group working together including doctors, nurses, healthcare aids and even cleaning staff.

"You all have to be a group that works well together in order to have a successful career," says Klassen.