Tzu Chi Scholarship Helped Dea and Andika Achieve Their Dream of Becoming a Nurse

Journalist : Khusnul Khotimah, Photographer : Khusnul Khotimah

Dea Fitriani while on duty at the nursery.

When Dea was in junior high school, she witnessed a group of kind people frequently coming to her remote village in order to treat the sick. The doctors examined the residents with friendly smiles on their faces. They gave medicine to the villagers which made them happy. Who were they? Dea were curious.

It turned out they were volunteers from Tzu Chi Foundation Singkawang. Her village, Caokng Village in Mempawah Hulu District, Landak Regency, West Kalimantan had become a Tzu Chi foster village. Dea was amazed and puzzled as to why these city people would want to come. The roads were difficult to traverse because they were still untouched by development.

“The residents are very happy and grateful since there were neither healthcare facilities nor access to hospital,” Dea remarked.

The sincerity of Tzu Chi volunteers left a deep impression for Dea. Not only the doctors, she also saw the nurses listening to patients’ concerns attentively. Young Dea was amazed. She aspired to be a nurse to help the people in her village, although she realized that her dream would be difficult to achieve since her parents were just modest farmers.

Time passed. It tuned out what Tzu Chi Singkawang provided for Caokng Village inspired several people to become volunteers, one of them was Willy, Dea’s brother. Dea herself had graduated from high school a year ago but she did not continue her education due to financial constraints.

One day, Willy told her that Tzu Chi Indonesia which was based in Jakarta was offering nursing scholarships. This was, of course, her sister’s long-held dream. Therefore, Dea applied and prepared to take the test.

“Since there was little to no signal in my area, I climbed the hill to to get a signal and study materials about nursing, which was what would be tested,” said Dea, who gathered information from the internet.

“Luck was on her side, Dea managed to secure the scholarship and study at Andalusia Nursing Academy in Tangerang. This scholarship transformed her life.

“I am very grateful to Tzu Chi Indonesia. I came from an underprivileged background. With this scholarship, I can continue my education and achieve my dreams and goals,” she said.

Since, 25 June 2024 until the next 3 months, Dea with other 27 students from Andalusia Nursing Academy attained the opportunity to intern at Tzu Chi Hospital at Pantai Indah Kapuk. This was a precious chance for Dea.

“Here I learn how nurses truly respect and provide excellent service to the patients. Just by giving a blanket, the patient would feel very grateful. This can also be a source of blessing,” said Dea gratefully.

Dreams Come True

Andika while on duty at the emergency unit.

One of Dea’s fellow comrade was Andika from North Lombok Regency. He also received Tzu Chi scholarship and was studying at Andalusia Nursing Academy. Currently, he is also interning at Tzu Chi Hospital.

In 2018, an earthquake struck Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara. Tzu Chi volunteers from Jakarta including medical team volunteers rushed to Lombok to treat the injured and provide various emergency aids. Andika who was in high school at that time, was moved by the compassion of Tzu Chi volunteers. That was the first time he learned about Tzu Chi.

In 2021, one month after high school graduation, the village head informed Andika that Buddhist Tzu Chi Foundation Indonesia was offering nursing scholarship, especially for students from underprivileged background. Andika was immediately interested, especially since both of her parents supported him. Moreover, there was not a single healthcare worker in his village. The healthcare facilities were also located very far away.

“Akin to Dea’s situation, the internet access in Dusun Buani, located in Bentek Village, Gangga District, North Lombok Regency was difficult. He had to climb the hill to gather information for the test preparation. Andika was very grateful to pass and receive the scholarship. After three years of studying, Andika also received the chance to intern at Tzu Chi Hospital.

“It was like a dream. Just one month after graduating, I received a scholarship. When I entered Tzu Chi Hospital, I suddenly found myself interning and meeting so many people. I never imagined that I could become a nurse,” remarked Andika, describing how Tzu Chi scholarship has profoundly transformed his life.

Interning at Tzu Chi Hospital has given Andika many life lessons especially on becoming a nurse who can empathize, respect, and treat patients kindly.

“Here I learnt to be more disciplined, and I also met kind senior nurses who taught me humanistic culture which might not be taught in all hospitals. Here, we learnt from small things, such as greeting people with smile no matter who they are,” he said.

Dea and Andika listening attentively to Novrin, one of the Nurse Educator at Tzu Chi Hospital

For Dea and Andika, interning at Tzu Chi Hospital was an valuable experience ingaining knowledge and practicing humanistic culture.

Novrin Senselia Putri was one of the Nurse Educator at Tzu Chi Hospital whose responsibility was to managed Dea, Andika, and also other interns. There were six Nurse Educator at Tzu Chi Hospital who were responsible for providing education and training interns so that the nurses could always perform well while being considerate and respecting everyone sincerely. According to Novrin, Dea and Andika were very cooperative and eager to learn.

“Actually, I am very happy since this was the first batch of student interns at Tzu Chi Hospital. The hospital opened its door for the first time in 2021 and we didn’t have any collaboration with any universities until now. So, they are the first ones to intern at Tzu Chi Hospital. Their progress is not the same with those applying for jobs here, so we have to guide them making this an interesting experience for us as well,” Novrin said.

This coming October, Dea and Andika is going to graduate from their nursing education. They were determined to become professional nurses, dedicating their efforts to help those in needs.

Translator: Putri Millenia Hadinata (Tzu Chi Palembang)

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