My name is Calliope Pannell and I am in my third year of nursing school at Seattle University, where I plan to graduate with my BSN and go on to receive my RN license. After I complete my bachelor's, I plan to work in the field for a few years before going back to school and earning my master's and possibly even a doctorate in nursing. I first became interested in nursing at a young age, although I did not know it yet. When I was about 5 years old, my brother was diagnosed with stage four Hodgekins Lymphoma. I went on to spend many days, nights, and even years visiting the Loma Linda Pediatric Oncology wing. It was here that I had my first memorable interactions with healthcare workers. I can still remember the kindness of the nurses. I was terrified of the hospital, I was scared to see my brother as sick as he was, but I remember my brother's nurses bringing in fun cartoon masks and gowns for him to wear and for me to wear to make everything a little less scary. There as so many other stories my family and I have of the nurses just like that one. It was their kindness and attention to detail that went on to inspire me to enter the healthcare industry, in the hopes to provide others with the same compassion. See, I believe nurses have the unique privilege of connecting with patients in a way doctors and other healthcare workers do not. I believe this privilege allows nurses to treat a patient as a whole person and not simply their injury or disease. Nurses can make life a little easier and happier just by being compassionate and paying attention to the small details that may not necessarily be a part of the treatment plan but can make all the difference. My goal is to be a nurse that treats patients with compassion and goes the extra step to provide the patient with simple pleasures or a friendly face. Currently, I work as a nurse technician at Harborview Medical Center in their Trauma Surgery Unit. This has been an eye-opening experience for me about the role of nurses. Now, I experience firsthand what compassion can do, but this time from the role of a healthcare worker. I see how much my actions matter and how much a small action can mean. While I have wanted to keep an open mind through my schooling on which field of nursing I want to go into to find a place I fit best, since working at Harborview I do not think Trauma is the career path for me. I am grateful for the experience I am getting and I think starting on a fast-paced and intense floor such as the Trauma Surgery floor and think that I have had to learn to be confident in my knowledge and skill in a way that I don't have to be in school. So far in my schooling, I have enjoyed obstetrics nursing and have thought about pursuing this and eventually going on to become a midwife. However, I still have my pediatrics and medsurg rotations, so I cannot say for certain that I have any concrete plans. So as for the type of nurse I want to be, all I can say is I want to be one that treats patients with kindness and one that loves my job.

When I was just under 5 years old my brother was diagnosed with stage four Hodgkin's Lymphoma. I spent many days of my early childhood in the pediatric oncology wing of Loma Linda. This was an extremely hard time for me, as I was a child who was scared of everything, and seeing my brother hooked up to all these machines was no exception. I was terrified and confused. Even scarier, I saw my parents just as scared and confused. I can remember the nurses bringing my brother masks and gowns with cartoon characters on them to try to make it less scary for me when I visited him. It was hard. My brother was so angry all the time because what he was going through wasn't fair, and he took it out on everyone, but the nurses never stopped being kind. It was like they understood where his anger was coming from and continued to try and brighten his spirits. My family continues to speak so highly of the nurses that were there for my brother. Their attitudes and help inspire me to this day. These nurses saw my brother, and my family for that matter, at his lowest moments. That is what is so unique about nurses, they get to connect to the patient in a way that doctors and other team members do not. Throughout my schooling, I have learned that this is a privilege that nurses have. Nurses are so often referred to as those who do the “grunt work”, the stuff nobody wants to do, and I find this is always talked about in a negative way. I believe that seeing what nurses do as a privilege rather than a burden, changes everything. It is a privilege to be able to help someone who cannot help themselves. It is a privilege to share these intimate moments with other people and be there for them in a way only nurses can be. The nurses I’ve had the pleasure of meeting, like those who helped my brother and even those who have helped me, have only reinforced this idea for me. It makes all the difference when a nurse treats patients with compassion and a warm friendly attitude. My goal is to one day have this privilege and to be able to treat patients with the understanding and compassion that I have seen through so many nurses. Eventually, I would like to do something that involves advocacy and policy. I believe that the nurses' unique ability to connect with patients allows them to see and understand problems that face certain populations and communities. I hope to use my future experience in a way where I can make a change and solve problems that are common but not addressed. My goal is to continue learning after my formal education and to apply what I’ve learned to help make changes in our healthcare system.

When I was just under 5 years old my brother was diagnosed with stage four Hodgkin's Lymphoma. I spent many days of my early childhood in the pediatric oncology wing of Loma Linda. This was an extremely hard time for me, as I was a child who was scared of everything, and seeing my brother hooked up to all these machines was no exception. I was terrified and confused. Even scarier, I saw my parents just as scared and confused. I can remember the nurses bringing my brother masks and gowns with cartoon characters on them to try to make it less scary for me when I visited him. It was hard. My brother was so angry all the time because what he was going through wasn't fair, and he took it out on everyone, but the nurses never stopped being kind. It was like they understood where his anger was coming from and continued to try and brighten his spirits. My family continues to speak so highly of the nurses that were there for my brother. Their attitudes and help inspire me to this day. These nurses saw my brother, and my family for that matter, at his lowest moments. That is what is so unique about nurses, they get to connect to the patient in a way that doctors and other team members do not. Throughout my schooling, I have learned that this is a privilege that nurses have. Nurses are so often referred to as those who do the “grunt work”, the stuff nobody wants to do, and I find this is always talked about in a negative way. I believe that by seeing what nurses do as a privilege rather than a burden, changes everything. It is a privilege to be able to help someone who cannot help themselves. It is a privilege to share these intimate moments with other people and be there for them in a way only nurses can be. The nurses I’ve had the pleasure of meeting, like those who helped my brother and even those who have helped me, have only reinforced this idea for me. It makes all the difference when a nurse treats patients with compassion and a warm friendly attitude. My goal is to one day have this privilege and to be able to treat patients with the understanding and compassion that I have seen through so many nurses. Eventually, I would like to do something that involves advocacy and policy. I believe that the nurses' unique ability to connect with patients allows them to see and understand problems that face certain populations and communities. I hope to use my future experience in a way where I can make change and solve problems that are common but not addressed. My goal is to continue learning after my formal education and to apply what I’ve learned to help make changes in our healthcare system.

When I was just under 5 years old my brother was diagnosed with stage four Hodgkin's Lymphoma. I spent many days of my early childhood in the pediatric oncology wing of Loma Linda. This was an extremely hard time for me, as I was a child who was scared of everything, and seeing my brother hooked up to all these machines was no exception. I was terrified and confused. Even scarier, I saw my parents just as scared and confused. I can remember the nurses bringing my brother masks and gowns with cartoon characters on them to try to make it less scary for me when I visited him. It was hard. My brother was so angry all the time because what he was going through wasn't fair, and he took it out on everyone, but the nurses never stopped being kind. It was like they understood where his anger was coming from and continued to try and brighten his spirits. My family continues to speak so highly of the nurses that were there for my brother. Their attitudes and help inspire me to this day. These nurses saw my brother, and my family for that matter, at his lowest moments. That is what is so unique about nurses, they get to connect to the patient in a way that doctors and other team members do not. Throughout my schooling, I have learned that this is a privilege that nurses have. Nurses are so often referred to as those who do the “grunt work”, the stuff nobody wants to do, and I find this is always talked about in a negative way. I believe that by seeing what nurses do as a privilege rather than a burden, changes everything. It is a privilege to be able to help someone who cannot help themselves. It is a privilege to share these intimate moments with other people and be there for them in a way only nurses can be. The nurses I’ve had the pleasure of meeting, like those who helped my brother and even those who have helped me, have only reinforced this idea for me. It makes all the difference when a nurse treats patients with compassion and a warm friendly attitude. My goal is to one day have this privilege and to be able to treat patients with the understanding and compassion that I have seen through so many nurses. Eventually, I would like to do something that involves advocacy and policy. I believe that the nurses' unique ability to connect with patients allows them to see and understand problems that face certain populations and communities. I hope to use my future experience in a way where I can make change and solve problems that are common but not addressed. My goal is to continue learning after my formal education and to apply what I’ve learned to help make changes in our healthcare system.

When I was just under 5 years old my brother was diagnosed with stage four Hodgkin's Lymphoma. I spent many days in my early childhood in the pediatric cancer wing of Loma Linda. I was a child who was scared of everything, and seeing my brother connected to a bunch of machines was no exception. I was terrified. I remember the nurses bringing my brother masks and gowns with cartoon characters on them to make it less scary for me when I visited him. To this day my family talks about these nurses so highly. My brother was so angry all the time because what he was going through wasn't fair, and he took it out on everyone, but the nurses never stopped being kind. It was like they understood where his anger was coming from and continued to try and brighten his spirits. Their attitudes and help inspire me to this day. These nurses saw my brother, and my family for that matter, at his lowest moments. That is what is so unique about nurses, they get to connect to the patient in a way that doctors and other team members do not. Throughout my schooling, I have learned that this is a privilege that nurses have. Nurses are so often referred to as those who do the “grunt work”; the stuff nobody wants to do, and I find this is always talked about in a negative way. I believe that by seeing what nurses do as a privilege rather than a burden, changes everything. It is a privilege to be able to help someone who cannot help themselves. It is a privilege to share these intimate moments with other people and be there for them in a way only nurses can be. The nurses I’ve had the pleasure of meeting, like those who helped my brother and even those who have helped me, have only reinforced this idea for me. It makes all the difference when a nurse treats patients with compassion and a warm friendly attitude. My goal is to one day have this privilege and to be able to treat patients with the understanding and compassion that I have seen through so many nurses. Eventually, I would like to do something that involves advocacy and policy. I believe that the nurses' unique ability to connect with patients allows them to see and understand problems that face certain populations and communities. I hope to use my future experience in a way where I can make change and solve problems that are common but not addressed. My goal is to continue learning after my formal education and to apply what I’ve learned to help make changes in our healthcare system.