2018 AMRI Scholarship Program by Hannah Hill
Author: Hannah Hill
School: University of Rochester
Area of Study: Accelerated Bachelors Program for Non-Nurses
Introduction
A career within the healthcare field, regardless of what my title would be, has always been my desire for as long as I can remember. I appreciate the field of medicine, for it is complex, innovative and constantly evolving to produce the next big scientific discovery that may benefit human health. However, the concept of healthcare is not all about forging these new scientific discoveries. It is also about making an impact, however minor it may be, on an individual’s life every single day. This is something I have come to realize over my time spent working as a caregiver, and is one of the primary motivators for me pursing a degree in nursing.
Becoming a Certified Nursing Assistant
In college, I participated in education abroad through the International Education of Students program in London, United Kingdom, and at Oxford University, where I participated in courses taught by healthcare professionals who have provided healthcare services worldwide. These instructors helped increase my awareness of the many health disparities present across global societies. Following my course work in London, I travelled to Kingston, Jamaica, where I was able to observe at the MONA School of Nursing and job shadow various public health nurses in both urban and rural health clinics as they delivered mental health services. Often, these services are administered under a tin roof in a small concrete shack in the rain forest, where nurses attempt to visit once a month. Public health nurses serve as the backbone of the health care system in Jamaica, as doctors are scarce, especially within the more rural areas. Additionally, I spent time at the non-profit organization Missionaries of the Poor, where volunteers continually devote their time to caring for physically and mentally handicapped individuals as well as those who have been exiled from their families and communities due to their HIV/AIDS status. I applied lotion to the hands and feet of the residents, and then spent time in the children’s area. Their families have neglected the majority of these children, due to their health status, as many of these children suffer from developmental problems. These experiences allowed me to view the healthcare system and the nursing profession on a global scale and to see the implications the nursing profession has within a society, regardless of ethnicity, religion and social status. When I returned to the United States, I decided to pursue a position as a caregiver at a local nursing home and enrolled for an alternative spring break trip to San José, Costa Rica, to assist in providing care for the disabled and elderly at a nursing home. I assisted the nurses with wound dressings, observed various tube feedings, and helped feed and bathe the residents. The residents all slept on small iron beds in a large, gymnasium-style room. Due to being sedentary for long periods of time and the high prevalence of diabetes, I witnessed several decubitus ulcers and amputated limbs. Due to these unforgettable experiences, I obtained my Certified Nursing Assistant license in order to gain the necessary skills to provide the best quality care to all of the individuals, both current and future, that I would be lucky enough to care for.
Learning in the Trenches
I will not lie and state that being a CNA is the easiest job in the world. When I first began my work as a basic caregiver, I wasn’t mentally prepared for the various bodily fluids I would be dealing with, nor was I physically prepared for the amount of lifting and the thousands of steps I would walk (sometimes jog) across the facility in order to answer a resident’s page in a timely fashion. I was also not prepared for the strong bonds I would form with so many of the residents, now like family, or the overwhelming sadness I would feel when a resident was sent to the hospital, and in the worst case, when they would never return home. Being a CNA is mentally and physically exhausting at times, yet extremely rewarding. I found in the beginning that it was often easy to become wrapped up in the day-to-day events of the same shift, where everything became routine over time and sometimes I would perform these actions robotically, waiting for the clock to strike 2 p.m. to signal shift change. There were often times where I didn’t feel appreciated by both the staff or the residents I was caring for, which made my job seem less valuable. Despite this, it was the reassurance and gratitude from certain staff members, residents, and their families that made me realize how valued my work really was. It was the words from one paralyzed resident who would thank me profusely every night as I helped her get ready for bed. It was the words from my head RN who thanked me for working extra hard after a chaotic day. My work as a CNA has made me realize more and more that the individuals I care for are simply human, just like you and I. Many of them are in tremendous physical and emotional pain, and they may take this pain and anger out on their caregivers. Though it may be difficult at times, one of the main lessons I have taken from my time as a CNA is to stay positive, even when feeling unvalued, and I hope to be a beacon of positivity in the lives of my future patients and their families, as well as among my co-workers.
The Passion to Become a Nurse
Both my international healthcare experience and work as a CNA have made me more passionate about becoming a nurse, and I plan on using the skills and knowledge I will gain within nursing school to make an impact internationally through involvement with various healthcare organizations. The time I have spent assisting the elderly and disabled both at home and abroad have made me even more passionate about providing healthcare to those who do not have easy access to medical services. I have observed how important it is for healthcare professionals to go out of their way to provide care for those in need through my extensive involvement in the Snake River Free Medical Clinic in Lewiston, Idaho, where I have job shadowed and assisted in the pharmacy through filling prescriptions. During my career as a nurse, I want to become a nurse educator and teach courses at similar free clinics, covering topics such as sexually transmitted diseases, nutrition, and reducing risk factors for obesity. My passion for becoming a nurse educator also strengthened following the research and construction of my Honors College thesis, which focused on key strategies to increase compliancy among healthcare workers across the United States towards receiving the annual influenza vaccination. I successfully presented and passed both the oral and written portions of my undergraduate thesis with excellence, and I am very proud of what I was able to accomplish during my undergraduate career.
Using ACLS and PALS Certifications to Save Lives
In the future, both ACLS and PALS certification will be beneficial as I begin my career as a registered nurse. Being equipped with these life-saving skills will allow me to act calmly in emergency situations and allow me to provide the best possible care at a critical time. These skills will assist me both while on shift and off shift, where there is a chance I will find myself immersed in an unexpected emergency setting. I will never forget volunteering at the local hospital emergency room in high school when I experienced one of my first emergency situations. I had been assisting at the emergency room check-in counter when a young woman had rushed her small infant into the room, wailing at the top of her lungs. She had placed her infant, who was noticeably blue in the face, on the table in front of me, screaming at me to do whatever I could to save her baby. Quickly, emergency room staff had rushed into the room and retrieved the infant, who unfortunately did not survive. I remember feeling so helpless and paralyzed as the woman screamed at me to take action. I was obviously not qualified to assist the child, yet I still disliked the feeling of being unprepared. I can confidently say that with future PALS training, I will feel confident and prepared when I am faced with a similar situation in the future.
Upcoming Career Milestones: Where I See Myself in 5, 10, and 15 Years
I am very excited for the upcoming milestones in my nursing career. As a recent college graduate from the Honors College at Washington State University with an undergraduate degree in Microbiology, I am currently pursuing a different career path than the one I had originally intended, which was to become a medical doctor. I now realize that nursing is a career better suited for my skills and personality, and I am excited to pursue a Bachelors of Science in Nursing. I am forever grateful for my CNA instructor, who served as a role model for me and made me more passionate and interested in the field of nursing. I will now be attending the University of Rochester in January of 2018 and participating in the Accelerated Bachelors Program for Non-Nurses. I will graduate in December of 2018 as a Registered Nurse. Following graduation, I plan on securing a nursing job in the Medical-Surgical or Paediatric Oncology units, which are the units I am most passionate about at this time. Despite my current interests, I am excited to begin my nursing program and complete multiple clinical rotations in different areas, so I can fully gauge what my interests really are and find an appropriate job that matches.
Within 5 years, I want to be involved in a Masters or Doctoral program for nursing. I am hoping to find some clarity as to what I want to do while I work as an RN for the first few years following graduation from the University of Rochester. I am currently interested in pursuing a career as a nurse practitioner, certified nurse anaesthetist, or continuing further to achieve my Doctor in Nursing Practice. I believe that pursuing any of these degrees will be extremely rewarding, regardless of what I choose. Within 10 to 15 years, I hope to be fully content with my job and working at a large hospital. In addition to providing direct patient care, I want to be established as a nurse educator. I hope to one day inspire future nursing students as my CNA instructor once inspired me, and I plan on teaching CNA courses. In addition, I want to teach within local free clinics and reach out to populations who cannot easily access or afford sound medical advice and healthcare services. I plan on broadening this education through volunteering with international health organizations and teaching populations in developing countries about their basic healthcare rights and how to prevent common illnesses. My dream has always been to volunteer with Doctors Without Borders, with the Red Cross, or with Mercy Ships.
Conclusion
As a future nurse, I look forward to giving back to those in need, and I am confident that pursuing a degree in nursing will provide me with a lifelong, fulfilling and humbling career. As an incoming student at the University of Rochester, I am excited and ready to take the next step in my career as a nurse. I am prepared to continue to challenge myself academically with a degree that I am so passionate about, just as I challenged myself while obtaining a Bachelors of Science degree in Microbiology. I am eager to provide care and assistance to all individuals in all corners of the world, regardless of their background and social class, and I will continue to strive daily to put others’ needs before my own in order to provide the best possible care. I am confident that my time working as a CNA has allowed me to truly grasp the full meaning behind being a nurse, and I hope that I can make an impact, large or small, on at least one of my patient’s lives in the near future. Thank you for taking the time to consider me as a candidate for this scholarship.