There are gender-based misconceptions about caregiving roles in the nursing profession that can create an issue with staffing, especially since there is a nursing shortage. One way I can positively impact the nursing profession is by inspiring and mentoring young men into the field of nursing. I want to be able to show them that you can have the "physical strength" but also be compassionate and caring to the patients and their families while they are trying to heal. I also would join a nursing organization or board where I can be an advocate to have my voice heard on policies that will build on inclusivity. I recall working as a PCA (Patient Care Technician) where I was assigned to an elderly patient. She was very frail and was giving the other nurses a difficult time. I entered the room, introduced myself and explain I would be doing her vitals and drawing blood for test that were ordered. She did not want me to handle her because she thought I would be too rough. I told her I would be as gentle as a lamb. I gained her trust by asking her to tell me something about her childhood. She was happy to tell me and boy was she going. Before you know it, I was done with vitals an blood draw. She was amazed at how she did not feel any pain or anything at all. Later in the shift, the charge nurse approached me to say how the patient only wants me to be her nurse until they discharge her. I would like to say, I did not do anything that special but listened to her story and be compassionate. I treated her just like I would have treated any member of my family. I want to radiate that as a man yes I am tough, disciplined and stoic, but I can be kind enough to place two warm blankets over you if the hospital room is too cold or help your grandparent put their socks on. That I can be patient enough to take the time to explain to you why you are being prescribed a new medication blood pressure regiment or why I am collecting labs from you so frequently. I want to show that as a man I can care for you and nurse you back to health without you feeling like you are in military boot camp. I want to inspire young men and volunteers that nursing is a field that is open to them and being caring or vulnerable with a patient does not make him any less of a man or makes him soft. But most importantly I can show that I can be there and be present, that during this time where you may not feel your best I can help provide a safe, comfortable space where you can trust me to care for you without fear.

The greatest challenge I had to overcome was self-doubt . There were plenty of moments in my childhood up until 2023-24 where I struggled with low self-esteem and believing in myself. Between each era of that time I experience bullying, I was struggling financially, dealing the death of loved ones and fighting to get into a nursing program. But, after experiencing multiple rejections from different programs I struggled to find the motivation to go back to school. I began to think about whether or not college was for me, let alone nursing. I had this immense passion for the career yet for some odd reason the many opportunities were closed in my face or financially I wouldn't be able to finish a semester. I faced so many pessimistic thoughts, feelings of discouragement plagued me daily and I talked down to myself because where I thought I'd see myself in five years is not where I am currently. Then, one day I came across two quotes that ignited a change of mindset for me. "Everything requires discipline, hard work, dedication and most importantly self-belief.", "A champion is defined by their wins, but how they recover when they fall."-Serena Williams. This experience has affected me because it challenged me to break out and shine in moments where it felt like my life was nothing less of ordinary and dark. It pushed me to look inward and reshape the way I see and think about myself from negative to positive. I was challenged to demand greatness from myself, to push myself to believe that I very much capable of not only getting into nursing school and obtaining my nursing degree, but to also fight and persevere for anything I want to achieve in life. From that moment I started listening to motivational speeches every morning, began speaking positivity over my mind and over everything I did. I decided to take control of my thoughts, to be persistent, to recover and be a champion. I believe I am a good candidate for this scholarship because I am in great need of financial assistance to pay for school. I also believe that with this scholarship it would ease the financial strain I am facing and allow me to focus on studying and preparing for the NCLEX. I've made it into the nursing program here at FVI and am currently in concepts 2 with the intent to finish and graduate from FVI August 2026.

I have always wanted to pursue a career in healthcare, but the career that stood out the most to me in the healthcare world was nursing. And I say this because nursing is a mixture of healing not just the body but building trust and delivering top of the line care to a complete stranger in a act of kindness. Nursing is a field where compassion and nurturing thrive together as one. The choice to take the responsibility to nurse, to nurture a complete stranger back to health depicts a form of kindness and humanity the world needs today. It is an honor to be a nurse and to show a patient that even though they may feel the worst they have ever been, they can trust me to do everything in my power to be a light for them in what may seem to be their darkest hour. As a nurse, our hands, heart and overall demeanor must be gentle and warm so that our patients can come to the hospital at ease, knowing that they would be well taken care of. That stands out to me because I do believe that in everything we do as people, we should always lead with kindness and beneficence. Also, it is the connection with your patient that makes nursing special and what separates it from the other careers in the healthcare field. Nurses make patients feel heard and seen. So as a nurse the way you interact with your patient determines the kind of relationship you and the patient will have and also how compliant the patient may be towards medical advice and care. Nurses spend a great amount of time with the individuals they are caring for, and with that time more trust is being built between the patient and the nurse. Setting a comfortable atmosphere through therapeutic communication and active listening allow people to fully express their fears, concerns and struggles without feeling judged. This is one of the most important parts of the process of being a nurse because vulnerability equals honesty and honesty builds trust. In the end, nursing is more than just administering tabloids or shots. Nursing is demanding more and more compassionate hearts who are set on the mission to not just heal the body but to provide qualities of care that are rare. Nursing is not just a job. It is a passion, it is a commitment to care for everyone regardless of race, gender, ethnicity and it is a honorable profession that I admire.