Why I should be chosen for this fellowship? I’m currently a senior nursing student at college. I volunteer at nursing lab every week assisting freshmen with their skills.
I’ve always known that I wanted to care for people that are suffering. I feel that I was born with the qualities to be of help to those in most need. When I was in lecture for medical surgical 1, I developed a high interest in oncology. At the time, my professor was going through hardships with her husband that has cancer. She really inspired me with her stories of how she took care of him. Shortly after that, my good friend was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer at the age of only 53. I got to take care of her many months at the hospital before she passed away. She would not eat her meals with other people, but with me she ate most of her food. Shortly after that I applied for the Oncology fellowship to travel to France, but unfortunately I was not chosen. I really wanted to go to France as volunteer to those with cancer. Towards the end of med surg 2, I went to our school’s job fair and left my resume for. A few days before finals, I got a call for an interview at hospital working at an oncology medical surgical floor. It was like that was my calling. I’ve been working with cancer patients since May 2019 and I love it. I have learned so much from my fellow nurses and managers. I get to see patients that come in and out of surgery with all types of cancers. The whipple surgery is very interesting, rectal, colon cancer, pancreatic, esophageal, stomach and many more. I also love to assist the wound care nurses with dressing changes, and patients with IV poles, chest tubes, wound vacs and more. One patient that really touched me the most was this sweetest lady, E.J, 54 years old she came in for an abdominal mass, she wasn’t sure if it was cancerous. She had a history of clot don her spinal cord, so they discussed the potential she would become paralyzed. After the surgery she vacate paraplegic. A chronic foley catheter was put undue to neurogenic bladder, she became weak, not eating, picc line was put in for TPN, she was discharged to rehab and developed stage 3 pressure pluckers on sacrum and stage 2 on heels, the folley stopped working, kidneys failed so she came back to my floor where I work. She got fluids and became very edematous and got third spacing. She because A/O x2 unresponsive. The rapid response was called for a seizure. They stayed with us after and patient refused all meds, she lost so much weight that she became cachexic. Palliative came and her husband which would visit every single day, he was not ready to let her go. She was on meds, heparin drip and amiodarone to keep her alive. Her final day, she became bradycardia in the 30’s and at that moment, her husband called DNR. On that day, even though she was not one of my patients, I went to her room and hugged her husband as he cried and my tear rolled down. Then I assisted my nurse with post Morten care. I feel so fortunate that I got to take care of this wonderful lady from the day she was smiling and ok to her last moment. Cancer affects a person in so many ways but it also affects their whole family. Even though I currently work as a PCA in oncology, and doing clinical this semester in an oncology unit, my scope of practice is very limited. If I get this fellowship I will be able to get hands on experience as a nursing student which I will be able to use for the rest of my nursing career when I become an oncology nurse. I feel that this is my destiny.
