Nursing is a profession that has both challenged my expectations and pushed me out of my comfort zone.  When successfully navigating throughout the obstacles of nursing school and finally  becoming a registered nurse, passing the NCLEX, I thought that I have reached my FINAL goal. I was in a season of new beginnings.  I moved with my family from New York upon graduating college and started living in Bluffton, South Carolina.  I began my job in late august of 2023, the new graduate nurse and new hire on the OR unit.  Although I had operating room exposure from my preceptorship senior year of nursing school, I still had and continue to have so much to learn.  My experience has been far from easy, but it has been one of the most rewarding experiences that I have ever pushed myself through.  If someone were to ask me to describe my role as an operating room RN circulator in a very “general” way, I would say that I am tasked to perform various methods of multitasking throughout the day, from case to case, dependent upon surgeon preferences and patient safety.  We are tasked to adequately document, safely prep our patients, ensure prophylactic medications have been given, interview our patients on their health status prior to the operation, set up the operating room with the equipment in the correct order and ensure our team members receive the correct instrumentation.  We also have an increased focus on surgeon preferences.   Although these tasks are essential for the correct operation of our unit, and actively on my mind, I learned to look deeper into my role as a nurse, and realized that being a true nurse comes from your compassion and dedication to deeply connect with your patients.  

It was about two months ago when I had my very first patient that encouraged me more than anyone or anything.  My patient suffered from extreme panic attacks and anxiety, and she was on the verge of an episode upon going into surgery.  I made it my GOAL that day to really understand what she was going through, as I have also dealt with anxiety in my own personal way.  After consoling her and asking her multiple questions about her daughter, her hobbies and her experiences with anxiety, my patient looked me in the eyes and said “you are my angel, I am going to pray for you.”  Little did my patient know, I was really anxious that day to perform at my absolute best at work.  I realized that day that my final goal was not solely to focus on being task oriented, but also taking the time to offer empathy, understanding and advocation for my patients.  Although my interview prior to surgery took longer than my team members have anticipated, it was truly that interaction that reminded me of why I chose to be a nurse from the beginning.  I am a registered nurse in the operating room, but I am also my patient’s voice and advocate. As a result of the SCNRI scholarship, I am given the opportunity to adjust to a new environment of living as a new South Carolina resident and start another journey while looking for housing.  In the future, I am also given the opportunity to expand my education and knowledge by returning to school to achieve my Nurse Practitioners license, particularly family NP as I take a strong interest in the pediatric population.