The Southwest Voice

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Actor James Garner was asked what he thought about getting older. His answer? “It beats the alternative.” Those fortunate enough to live a long life may need help as the aging process takes up residence in our minds and bodies. A good person to know along the way is local nurse Audrey Cochran, RNCS.

Cochran, of Southwest Bakersfield, is a 2008 recipient of the Cal State Bakersfield President’s Medal. Recipients of the medal are honored for excellence in their field, their partnership with others in the field and their dedication to the community.

At age 5, Cochran received a “Doctor’s Kit” for Christmas.

“At that time only men were doctor,s so I decided to be a nurse,” she said. “It stayed with me my whole life.”

Cochran graduated with a degree in nursing from Stanford University in 1954 and still works in her chosen profession. She contributes in ways that are particularly unique as a specialist in gerontology and knows more than most people about elder care.

The state business and professions code describes the nursing profession as, “The diagnosis and treatment of the human response to actual or potential illness.”

“Human response to illness is the key,” she emphasized. “Doctors diagnose the illness. Nurses diagnose the human response. Doctors diagnose treatments and prescribe drugs. Nurses generally administer them.”

“Administering prescribed treatments and drugs is an awesome responsibility,” Cochran said. “If a nurse is in charge of a patient and that patient’s prescription drugs, that patient’s life is in her hands. If the nurse believes something is inappropriate or there is an inappropriate human response, the physician must be advised. This is his or her responsibility and it’s a serious one.”

To put it simply, Cochran added, “Doctors name a disease; nurses tell people how to deal with it. I believe that knowing how to deal with it is more useful than knowing you have it.”

Cochran began her career as the operating room nurse in Mark Twain District Hospital in San Andreas. As the career of her husband, Bob moved them to other places, her career changed to pediatrics in Fresno County, school nursing, acute care in the East Bay Area, and finally gerontology in Kern County.

At the urging of her husband and her mother-in-law, Cochran enrolled in CSUB’s master’s degree program in nursing and earned her master’s in 1990 with an additional 50 units in fields relating to the care of the elderly. She currently visits patients in the hospital and at home to assess their needs and provides advice to the patient and the family. For this service, there is a charge, but for many of the ways Audrey helps people, there is no charge.

Cochran frequently uses the Internet to research and is president of the Kern Independent PC Users Group. She is a volunteer parish nurse at Westminster Presbyterian Church, a member of the Green Thumb Garden Club and provides guidance, at no charge — to a support group for caregivers that meets once a month. She spends one day a week in the office of a local gynecologist providing advice and support to women of all ages to help them regain bladder control without surgery or medicines, both of which can have distressing side effects.

In a discussion about the pros and cons of a nursing career, Cochran candidly said, “This is one job they can’t ship overseas. It’s a specialized, hands-on career. It’s very, very hard work. There is a high incidence of back injuries in the nursing profession. Sometimes the hours are long and arduous. Sometimes it’s very sad. Sometimes there are very happy outcomes. It is a very rewarding profession. Meeting wonderful families and patients and being able to help them makes it all worthwhile.”

When asked how she would advise those considering a nursing career, she said, “They need to be strong and healthy! They must be intellectually curious. They must love people and want to help.  They must study and stay aware of career updates and always be ready to learn something new.”

Cochran’s husband of 50 years passed away two years ago. She said, “God gave me a vision. It was to arrange for a million dollar gift to the CSUB Department of Nursing in the form of an endowed chair in his and his mother’s name, to be used primarily in the field of gerontology.”

The endowment is $70,000 short of the million dollars. Cochran hopes contributions will come so in that it will reach the $1 million level. Income from this endowment will last for many years and provide research funds, conference opportunities, grad student work opportunities, and other projects that are integral to the success of the nursing program, she said.

Cochran believes the nursing program at CSUB is outstanding. She is convinced that students are taught well by an accomplished staff that teaches them to successfully fulfill the enormous responsibilities of the profession.

At age 76, Cochran said one of her main goals is to educate the aging and their families. “I am also going to dispel that awful myth that aging is a useless, difficult time in life,” she said.

For her, it is a very productive time. As the population lives longer and longer, Cochran is just one example of the valuable contributions made by the elderly.

— After 2 1/2 years of fund raising, Audrey Cochran is still $70,000 short. Readers who wish to aid in this effort may send a check to the CSUB Foundation, 9001 Stockdale Highway, Bakersfield CA 93311-1099. Please write “Cochran Endowment Fund” on the memo line of the check.