Final Reflection
As we approach our final weeks of school, I am truly thankful for the amazing cohort and instructors that I have met throughout this journey that we call nursing school. I can still remember my initial plan, which was to apply to Ventura’s nursing program since I did not have much faith in making it to CSUCI. Speaking to one of our classmates, one who I went to high school with but did not really talk to, Cesar encouraged me to apply to CSUCI instead to purse my nursing career. I was fortunate to have a friend like him because he had faith in me and believed that we could both make the program and flourish throughout the 3 extensive years. In disbelief, I received a letter stating that I was accepted into the program. From this point on, I realized that my life would change forever and there would be a lot of sleepless nights, but it would all be well worth the pain.
Critical care, our last nursing course, has truly taught me a lot about nursing and the importance of truly using “critical thinking.” This discipline takes a special type of nurse because nurses are faced with seeing individuals at their worst along with families grieving for their loved ones. It’s difficult not to imagine your own family members in such critical states, but being in this profession makes it inevitable. I had the opportunity to work with many nurses who were delighted to have students, which made my experience even better because I was able to learn a lot and take note of their personal practice. I have probably performed more skills during this semester than all of the other clinical semesters combined, which is always a plus for us since we rarely have time to perform skills in the clinical setting. Aside from my experiences, I also wanted to commend our instructors for sticking throughout this journey with us and providing us with their knowledge and experiences. A famous quote that has always stuck with me (also because my dad hates it when I don’t know how to do something) states “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.” While this quote highlights the importance of knowledge and ability to work, nursing school has taught us more than we can ever imagine. I have learned to give my time and presence to patients and their families when no one else would listen. I spoke to patients and truly sat down to listen to their stories because I knew that they have not had a decent conversation since their hospitalization. As I reflect on the last 3 years of nursing school, there is one thing that I will never forget. That is to be genuine in all that you do and do not let anyone change who you are because we are all special in each of our own ways and contribute equally to this profession that we call nursing.
