2014.036.012 Oral History Interview with Selina Chan
In this interview, Selina Chan talks about her cultural background, family, career, and life in New York City as a nurse before and after 9/11. Chan and her family fled to Hong Kong from Shanghai in 1959 by boat when she was only nine years old. She studied in Hong Kong and received her nursing degree there before immigrating to America, specifically New York City. She talks about overcoming many obstacles, such as learning new Chinese dialects, learning English, taking on multiple jobs, and getting her driver’s license while joining the American workforce as a minority and nurse. Chan reminisces about being a fearless child and working hard to support her father and brother. While her mother passed away before Chan could become a nurse, she knows that her mother would be proud of her accomplishments. In the last part of the interview, Chan talks about the impact 9/11 had on St. Vincent Hospital and her patients. Chan talks about how she did everything she could do that day to go back to her hospital and to save lives.

0:00 - Age and full name, 53 years old, Selina Chan, being born in Shanghai, living in Hong Kong, going to the United States in 1975, difficulty getting into Hong Kong, escape to Hong Kong by boat, childhood life in China, living comfortably in China, father always traveling, shipping company, extended family that fled to Hong Kong, mother giving birth to brother in Hong Kong

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4:00 - Journey by boat into Hong Kong, hiding underneath the boat, captain being a drug addict, getting caught by the police and going to jail for a night, being nine years old when transported to HK, stuck at bottom of ship, mother being six months pregnant during trip, people vomiting in the ship, being stopped by the police in HK, stop at Macau, three-thousand dollars in 1959 to go to HK, father having an apartment in HK, applying for a residency and getting an education in HK

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7:25 - Cousins that live in Hong Kong and Shanghai, going back to China to visit family, Selina being adventurous when she was younger, not being scared on the boat, strength as a young person, going to Macau from Shanghai, father did not go back to get his family in Shanghai, father got family in Canton and took them to Macau, 1959 in Hong Kong, Shanghainese in Hong Kong, not knowing English when younger, not knowing Canton well, going to a private school

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11:13 - English classes at school, most subjects in Cantonese, living in Hung Hom in Hong Kong, father was the one who worked, mother was not physically well, mother being in hospital a lot, current profession as a nurse, mother being mistreated when staying at a hospital, Selina wanting to help her mother as a nurse, mother passing away before she could become a nurse, night shift as a pediatric nurse, operating room nurse, nursing not being easy

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15:28 - Selina wanted her father to not work anymore, being a doctor was not an option due to financial reasons, coming to America in 1975, Selina’s uncle was in America, almost going to London to further education, the British system not recognizing nurses as an equal, personality being more suitable in America, learning about the British system in Hong Kong, applying for a professional visa, father getting old

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19:00 - Coming to New York, never leaving New York City, landing in JFK in the morning, losing two suitcases when traveling, coming to New York at 25 years old, needing another nursing? certificate in America, expectations before coming to America, goal to work hard in America, wanting to go back to Hong Kong after a decade, going back to China in 1984, feeling touched to visit hometown, not being an ordinary Chinese person

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25:52 - Traditional Chinese women more humble, professionally and equally working in America, not with many Asians in the 1980s, in school during weekends, getting an apartment in Queens, living in Flushing currently, not wanting to work at a nursing home but learned a lot, got a drivers license, involved in patient care, job at St. Vincent, more aggressive, wanting to set up a Chinese nursing home, Chinatown in NYC, proud of Chinese identity and heritage, wanting to give back to Chinese community

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34:15 - Being single, having two jobs, not having a private life, patient with a gunshot wound, feeling gratitude from patients, mother would be proud of Selina, 9/11, Chinese patients not having health insurance, starting a clinic in Chinatown, St. Vincent opening, no advertising in Chinatown, hearing about 9/11 over the radio, seeing the buildings collapse, having to report to St. Vincent after 9/11, no communication on 9/11, being a New Yorker

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43:21 - Only ambulance coming, not many ambulances coming because there were not many survivors, trauma case, going to Saint Margaret House for a few days, emergency preparation, worst thing to do in an emergency is to panic as a nurse

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49:22 - Smoke being very heavy after 9/11, Ground Zero, World Trade Center, dust being everywhere, people panicking, having a heart to help each other, professional attitude being applied to 9/11, Catholic organization, many sad and tragic stories from 9/11

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56:26 - Had a few counseling meetings after 9/11 for her patients, traumatized from 9/11, psychiatrists going to Saint Margaret House, patients not being able to look out the window, the majority being Chinese, having many immigrant patients, three generations of patients, old immigrants being from Canton, newer patients being Fujianese, Selina speaking Mandarin, new wave of patients speaking Mandarin, charging a very low fee for patients, charity money from Catholic organization, immigration program

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61:56 - 9/11 changing emergency preparation, building a new emergency room in St. Vincent, emergency room to be done in 2005, SARS and 2003, how clinic handled SARS, directing patients to go to the emergency room, getting sick patients masks, isolation, catching a cold while traveling from China to America, hay fever, allergy season

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66:45 - First awareness of SARS, learning about SARS in the Chinese newspaper, high fever, coughing, Department of Health, not handling any SARS cases, some patients calling about being sick, isolation room, Chinatown being more quiet during that time, calming patients down about SARS, mouth-to-mouth resuscitation

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72:38 - Accepting low-income patients, all patients deserving healthcare, wanting an assisted living or nursing home for elderly Chinese, not wanting to retire until reaching goals, looking forward to the future, not looking for something in return, wanting to go back to China or Hong Kong

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