Some people start nursing school knowing what specialty they want to work in while others do not. I was one of them that did not. A benefit of this is having an open mind to whatever experiences occur while on the hospital floors. Through my time through school I have been able to experience medical-surgical, geriatrics, obstetrics, pediatrics, informatics, and mental health. With this, I know I do not want to be an obstetric or geriatric nurse. Bedside nursing does not interest me very much but I know having one or two years experience under my belt would be beneficial to help make me a more well-rounded nurse. I am open to being a pediatric or a psychiatric nurse. Currently, I am going through my mental health practicum which has been an exciting experience! However, nurse burnout seems to be very easy as to shut yourself off to the patients. The most positive experience I have had was during my pediatric rotation. I was able to follow great nurses at a Kaiser Permanete
facility in Fontana. I was able to learn so much as well as see how it is to be a PICU and oncology nurse. The entire staff was great as there was a level of collaboration among the nurses and the physicians. I also liked how the family was incorporated into the patients' care since I believe this is an important part of the patient's health promotion, especially since they are children. Seeing sick children is sad but they have a much better outlook than many adult patients which helps put it into perspective for me. Aside from the staff and patients, I believe one reason I enjoyed pediatrics was because I am quite a kid at heart and has always been able to relate to them no matter how old I am.

However, I have yet to experience public health and critical care which may sway my final decision.
Also, I would like to be involved in clinics which go overseas to help with medical issues and build a relationship to  share the Gospel. I come from a family of nurses who have been involved in these such things. My grandmother, aunt, uncle, and sister have all gone overseas and I hope to eventually follow these footsteps. I know age is not an issue with this as my grandmother is going to Africa at the young age of 82. In the end though, I do not want to confine myself to just one type of nursing. Instead I want to be able to experience different kinds as to give me a variety of nursing care knowledge. As well, I want to be able to realize when I am having burnout so I can move on to the next thing in order to be the best nurse for my patient.

Writing this post reminds me that after this semester I have only one year left until I am finished! Crazy how fast and slow that this journey has been as I reflect on those past years. It feels like just last year I had my freshman orientation but now I am a couple months away from being a senior.