“A nurse saved my life.” This is main reason I see most people give for wanting to go into the nursing field. Whether it is their life or the life of a close friend or family member, that interaction with a nurse impacted them so much that they wanted to do the same for others. However, that is not my story. I have no family background in the health field nor did I have any one positive life changing event that drew me to the field of nursing. I wanted to become a nurse because I had the total opposite experience when dealing with nurses and doctors. I strongly believe in the words of Gandhi, “Be the change you wish to see in the world”. I have seen and been that child whose complaints and pains were ignored by the adults around them for whatever the reason may have been. I have been and seen that woman whose concerns were belittled and illnesses were drastically misdiagnosed due to misconceptions and unintentional biases. I have been and seen the patients with real issues and pain that are unnecessarily sitting in the ER waiting room because they were not taken seriously, so they were not triaged properly. I have been and seen the patients who waits until their small health issue has developed into a severe issue because they do not believe that they will be cared for or do not know what resources are available to them. I want to be that nurse that sees the worn down clothes, the bad personal hygiene, the uncontrolled hypertension or diabetes, the multiple hospital visits, the unfilled prescriptions, the biases and the misinformation and treats the person instead. The nurse that does not just work to get the patient out of their bed, but finds ways to help prevent them from being there in the first place. The nurse that shows compassion, care, and genuine concern because the patient is concerned and deserves to be treated with human decency. The nurse that helps the patient understand what's going on with their care without belittling or alienating the patient. The nurse who truly seeks to understand the patient’s perspective and point of view without judgment so that the patients can get the best care the facility has available no matter the situation. The nurse that advocates for their patient and encourages other nurses and providers to join them in doing the same. I am passionate about patient care, patient advocacy, and patient education in order to change how underserved communities see healthcare and what resources they have available. The change I want to see is not easy. It will not occur overnight. I will not always feel like providing that above and beyond caliber of care. I will not immediately be my ideal kind of healthcare worker. However, I know the change I want will slowly, but surely come to pass. This is because I will do my best to be that nurse who continuously has that one positive, powerful interaction with that one person or family that will lead another person to want to be that kind of nurse as well.

“A nurse saved my life.” This is main reason I see most people give for wanting to go into the nursing field. Whether it is their life or the life of a close friend or family member, that interaction with a nurse impacted them so much that they wanted to do the same for others. However, that is not my story. I have no family background in the health field nor did I have any one positive life changing event that drew me to the field of nursing. I wanted to become a nurse because I had the total opposite experience when dealing with nurses and doctors. After three extremely high risk pregnancies; many orthopedic injuries from sports; being a single parent on medicaid; counseling children in relation to DFCS; and working as a first responder, I have seen first hand that patient focused nurses who care for the community they serve are in desperate need. I strongly believe in the words of Gandhi, “Be the change you wish to see in the world”. I have seen and been that child whose complaints and pains were ignored by the adults around them for whatever the reason may have been. I have been and seen that woman whose concerns were belittled and illnesses were drastically misdiagnosed due to misconceptions and unintentional biases. I have been and seen the patients with real issues and pain that are unnecessarily sitting in the ER waiting room because they were not taken seriously, so they were not triaged properly. I have been and seen the patients who waits until their small health issue has developed into a severe issue because they do not believe that they will be cared for or do not know what resources are available to them. I want to be that nurse that sees the worn down clothes, the bad personal hygiene, the uncontrolled hypertension or diabetes, the multiple hospital visits, the unfilled prescriptions, the biases and the misinformation and treats the person instead. The nurse that does not just work to get the patient out of their bed, but finds ways to help prevent them from being there in the first place. The nurse that shows compassion, care, and genuine concern because the patient is concerned and deserves to be treated with human decency. The nurse that helps the patient understand what's going on with their care without belittling or alienating the patient. The nurse who truly seeks to understand the patient’s perspective and point of view without judgment so that the patients can get the best care the facility has available no matter the situation. The nurse that advocates for their patient and encourages other nurses and providers to join them in doing the same. I am passionate about patient care, patient advocacy, and patient education in order to change how underserved communities see healthcare and what resources they have available. The change I want to see is not easy. It will not occur overnight. I will not always feel like providing that above and beyond caliber of care. I will not immediately be my ideal kind of healthcare worker. I will fall short and make mistakes. I will not be able to influence all my peers around me. However, I know the change I want will slowly, but surely come to pass. This is because I will do my best to be that nurse who continuously has that one positive, powerful interaction with that one person or family that will lead another person to want to be that kind of nurse as well.

“A nurse saved my life.” This is main reason I see most people give for wanting to go into the nursing field. Whether it is their life or the life of a close friend or family member, that interaction with a nurse impacted them so much that they wanted to do the same for others. However, that is not my story. I have no family background in the health field nor did I have any one positive life changing event that drew me to the field of nursing. I wanted to become a nurse because I had the total opposite experience when dealing with nurses and doctors. After three extremely high risk pregnancies; many orthopedic injuries from sports; being a single parent on medicaid; counseling children in relation to DFCS; and working as a first responder, I have seen first hand that patient focused nurses who care for the community they serve are in desperate need. I strongly believe in the words of Gandhi, “Be the change you wish to see in the world”. I have seen and been that child whose complaints and pains were ignored by the adults around them for whatever the reason may have been. I have been and seen that woman whose concerns were belittled and illnesses were drastically misdiagnosed due to misconceptions and unintentional biases. I have been and seen the patients with real issues and pain that are unnecessarily sitting in the ER waiting room because they were not taken seriously, so they were not triaged properly. I have been and seen the patients who waits until their small health issue has developed into a severe issue because they do not believe that they will be cared for or do not know what resources are available to them. I want to be that nurse that sees the worn down clothes, the bad personal hygiene, the uncontrolled hypertension or diabetes, the multiple hospital visits, the unfilled prescriptions, the biases and the misinformation and treats the person instead. The nurse that does not just work to get the patient out of their bed, but finds ways to help prevent them from being there in the first place. The nurse that shows compassion, care, and genuine concern because the patient is concerned and deserves to be treated with human decency. The nurse that helps the patient understand what's going on with their care without belittling or alienating the patient. The nurse who truly seeks to understand the patient’s perspective and point of view without judgment so that the patients can get the best care the facility has available no matter the situation. The nurse that advocates for their patient and encourages other nurses and providers to join them in doing the same. I am passionate about patient care, patient advocacy, and patient education in order to change how underserved communities see healthcare and what resources they have available. The change I want to see is not easy. It will not occur overnight. I will not always feel like providing that above and beyond caliber of care. I will not immediately be my ideal kind of healthcare worker. I will fall short and make mistakes. I will not be able to influence all my peers around me. However, I know the change I want will slowly, but surely come to pass. This is because I will do my best to be that nurse who continuously has that one positive, powerful interaction with that one person or family that will lead another person to want to be that kind of nurse as well.

I strongly believe in the words of Gandhi, “Be the change you wish to see in the world”. I have seen and been that child whose complaints and pains were ignored by the adults around them for whatever the reason may have been. I have been and seen that woman whose concerns were belittled and illnesses were drastically misdiagnosed due to misconceptions and unintentional biases. I have been and seen the patients with real issues and pain that are unnecessarily sitting in the ER waiting room because they were not taken seriously, so they were not triaged properly. I have been and seen the patients who waits until their small health issue has developed into a severe issue because they do not believe that they will be cared for or do not know what resources are available to them. I want to be that nurse that sees the worn down clothes, the bad personal hygiene, the uncontrolled hypertension or diabetes, the multiple hospital visits, the unfilled prescriptions, the biases and the misinformation and treats the person instead. The nurse that does not just work to get the patient out of their bed, but finds ways to help prevent them from being there in the first place. The nurse that shows compassion, care, and genuine concern because the patient is concerned and deserves to be treated with human decency. The nurse that helps the patient understand what's going on with their care without belittling or alienating the patient. The nurse who truly seeks to understand the patient’s perspective and point of view without judgment so that the patients can get the best care the facility has available no matter the situation. The nurse that advocates for their patient and encourages other nurses and providers to join them in doing the same. I am passionate about patient care, patient advocacy, and patient education in order to change how underserved communities see healthcare and what resources they have available. This scholarship would allow me to get a step closer to becoming the nurse that my community deserves. Whether it will pay for books, help me make up the difference in financial aid, or help pay down my current student loans, I know the change I want will slowly, but surely come to pass. This is because I will do my best to be that nurse who continuously has that one positive, powerful interaction with that one person or family that will lead another person to want to be that kind of nurse as well.

“A nurse saved my life.” This is main reason I see most people give for wanting to go into the nursing field. Whether it is their life or the life of a close friend or family member, that interaction with a nurse impacted them so much that they wanted to do the same for others. However, that is not my story. I have no family background in the health field nor did I have any one positive life changing event that drew me to the field of nursing. I wanted to become a nurse because I had the total opposite experience when dealing with nurses and doctors. After three extremely high risk pregnancies; many orthopedic injuries from sports; being a single parent on medicaid; counseling children in relation to DFCS; and working as a first responder, I have seen first hand that patient focused nurses who care for the community they serve are in desperate need. I have years of experience in education, mental health counseling, and emergency care. While teaching, I was able to work in both urban and rural Title I school districts. This allowed me to work with children and families from drastically different cultural backgrounds, with different access to resources, and varying socioeconomic statuses. In working with mental health, I focused my care on children, teens, and young adults who had severe trauma or behavioral health issues because there were not enough counselors that wanted to work these cases. These clients were usually involved in intensive family intervention or required counseling after being removed from their family home by DFCS for various reasons. While working in emergency care, I served communities in metro Atlanta which is a melting pot of cultures and socioeconomic backgrounds. What I found to be the most important lesson learned in all of these experiences is that everyone no matter the circumstances wants and deserves respect and to be treated with love and care. I strongly believe in the words of Gandhi, “Be the change you wish to see in the world”. I want to be that nurse that sees the worn down clothes, the bad personal hygiene, the uncontrolled hypertension or diabetes, the multiple hospital visits, the unfilled prescriptions, the biases and the misinformation and treats the person instead. The nurse that does not just work to get the patient out of their bed, but finds ways to help prevent them from being there in the first place. The nurse that shows compassion, care, and genuine concern because the patient is concerned and deserves to be treated with human decency. The nurse that helps the patient understand what's going on with their care without belittling or alienating the patient. The nurse who truly seeks to understand the patient’s perspective and point of view without judgment so that the patients can get the best care the facility has available no matter the situation. The nurse that advocates for their patient and encourages other nurses and providers to join them in doing the same. I am passionate about patient care, patient advocacy, and patient education in order to change how underserved communities see healthcare and what resources they have available. The change I want to see is not easy. It will not occur overnight. However, I know the change I want will slowly, but surely come to pass. This is because I will do my best to be that nurse who continuously has that one positive, powerful interaction with that one person or family that will lead another person to want to be that kind of nurse as well.

“A nurse saved my life.” This is main reason I see most people give for wanting to go into the nursing field. Whether it is their life or the life of a close friend or family member, that interaction with a nurse impacted them so much that they wanted to do the same for others. However, that is not my story. I have no family background in the health field nor did I have any positive life changing event that drew me to the field of nursing. I wanted to become a nurse because I had the total opposite experience when dealing with nurses and doctors. After three extremely high risk pregnancies; many orthopedic injuries from sports; being a single parent on medicaid; counseling children in relation to DFCS; and working as a first responder, I have seen first hand that patient focused nurses who care for the community they serve are in desperate need. I strongly believe in the words of Gandhi, “Be the change you wish to see in the world”. During my last pregnancy, I had several superficial blood clots and two instances of Deep Vein Thrombosis, one of which progressed to a Pulmonary Embolism. I was forced into long term disability at my previous job as a Firefighter. Along with the emotional and financial strain of my health issues, I was not properly cared for by my ObGyn. In fact, had to take an uber to the hospital because he ignored signs of my PE. Then, I waited 7 hours in the ER while 8 months pregnant with a 160 bpm heart rate and difficulty breathing. I truly believe if I was not so sure that something was wrong, I could have went home and became deathly ill. I want to be that nurse that sees the worn down clothes, the bad personal hygiene, the uncontrolled hypertension or diabetes, the multiple hospital visits, the unfilled prescriptions, the biases and the misinformation and treats the person instead. The nurse that does not just work to get the patient out of their bed, but finds ways to help prevent them from being there in the first place. The nurse that shows compassion, care, and genuine concern because the patient is concerned and deserves to be treated with human decency. The nurse that helps the patient understand what's going on with their care without belittling or alienating the patient. The nurse who truly seeks to understand the patient’s perspective and point of view without judgment so that the patients can get the best care the facility has available no matter the situation. The nurse that advocates for their patient and encourages other nurses and providers to join them in doing the same. I am passionate about patient care, patient advocacy, and patient education in order to change how underserved communities see healthcare and what resources they have available.The change I want to see is not easy. It will not occur overnight. I will not always feel like providing that above and beyond caliber of care. I will not immediately be my ideal kind of healthcare worker. I will fall short and make mistakes. I will not be able to influence all my peers around me. However, I know the change I want will slowly, but surely come to pass. This is because I will do my best to be that nurse who continuously has that one positive, powerful interaction with that one person or family that will lead another person to want to be that kind of nurse as well.