Welcome to my e-Portfolio website where I have laid out many of my academic and career achievements and accolades. Please kindly offer words of advice or suggestions for career opportunities!
I’ve always wanted to be in the medical professions and saw that the nursing field offered so many different avenues to make a difference. Reflecting on my path to get into the profession and the roles that I have had along the way, I definitely feel like I have taken the long way there. However, I would not trade it in for anything else. I am so grateful for all the people that I have met along the way and I am grateful for all that the profession has given back to me.
My first step into the medical field was taking on the role as a medical insurance enrollment representative with Metroplus Health Plan. I would be responsible for educating the public on the importance of medical coverage and qualifying individuals and families for insurance programs such as Medicaid, Family Health Plus and Child Health Plus. Then I had the opportunity to take part and complete a nursing assistant training program. Shortly afterwards, I enrolled into an LPN program where I worked as an LPN in numerous nursing homes. It was as an LPN where I learned foundational nursing care and critical thinking skills. Lastly, while working as a full time LPN and as a part time RN nursing student, I was able to obtain my associate in nursing and RN license in 2017. I have had many roles at an RN since then. I have worked as a medical surgical nurse, intake RN for a home care agency, and most recently as a circulating nurse in the operating room.
As I continue to develop my clinical and interpersonal skills in the work environment, I have noticed certain tendencies, strengths, and preferences that I have. My individual strengths are the ability to remain disciplined, hardworking, and being an ultimate team player. My personal belief is to work within a set parameter, knowing work policies and procedures, and recognize the reason that rules are set in place to maintain a certain degree of predictability, positive outcome, and safety. However, I also recognize the need to speak up when policies are ineffective. This starts with remaining disciplined in how you work. Being a hard worker comes from the personal work ethic instilled in me by my parents and upbringing. One of my favorite quotes comes from Derek Jeter, former captain of the New York Yankees, which captures the importance of hard work. “There may be people who have more talent than you, but there’s no excuse for anyone to work harder than you do.” Lastly, I recognize the importance and need for teamwork in providing nursing care. Being part of the interdisciplinary team environment requires constant effective communication and coordination. I love it when I can contribute to larger goals than myself and achieving things that I can not do on an individual basis.
Career goals have been more or less of a meandering road where I have been hoping to find a specific field in nursing that I can say is my calling. As I continue to grow as a nurse and take on new responsibilities, I continue to get more comfortable with the many responsibilities and challenges nursing presents. One area that I find that I may be good at, but I do not have a natural passion for is geriatric nursing as I am able to work well with the older adult population. The operating room environment, my current role as an OR nurse, looks like a good area to continue towards.
