Personal Introduction

My nursing career began in high school when my papa suffered a massive stroke. During this
time, the nursing staff taking care of him impressed me with such compassionate care which
opened up my eyes to my career in life. I started off taking the nursing assistant program and
followed with the practical nursing course in high school, continuing with an associate degree.
My nursing experience began with long term care and transitioned to orthopedic nursing. I
became the first certified orthopedic nurse at Bon Secours Memorial Regional Medical Center in
2009. When needed, I helped teach the pre-op joint replacement classes. Along with doing this, I
serve as a preceptor to new Bon Secours employees and was also a preceptor to nursing students
through their clinical immersion course. I enjoy working with orthopedic patients even though
now I work with all types of surgical patients in the pre admission testing department. As a
registered nurse for 19 years, I decided to return to school in 2014 to work towards a BSN.
I am proud to be a nurse and give a lifelong commitment of providing good help to those in need
and believe in providing quality nursing care. Over the years, I have been involved in Shared
Government Councils such as nursing quality council, recruitment and retention, served on the
gallop service excellence committee, and parish nurse involvement with activities such as health
fairs, influenza clinics, blood pressure screenings, and a global mission trip to Haiti.
My specific nursing goals over the next five years are completing my bachelor's degree in 2019
or 2020 and advancing from a clinician III to a clinician IV on the Bon Secours Clinical Ladder.
In the next ten years, my goals are to take on the responsibility of a chair or co-chair position for
the recruitment and retention council and to be more actively involved in the NAON( National
Association of Orthopedic Nurses) chapter and possibly taking on an officer role in the local
chapter to increase leadership skills and professional growth and development. My strongest
desire in the next ten years are to attend more medical mission trips and obtain a position in a
mission driven mobile health care to provide compassionate care to the underserved population
in the community.
Nurses should obtain their BSN because it helps professional growth and development and the
job market is more competitive. According to the New England Journal of Medicine, nurses who
are better educated can possibly improve patient's outcomes. (Aiken, 2011)
References
Aiken, L. (2011, January 20). Nurses for the future. The New England Journal of Medicine,
196-198.