Jenifer C.

I am a baccalaureate-prepared Registered Nurse and have been practicing nursing for 16 years. My nursing career began in the oncology (cancer) and hospice (end-of-life) specialties; I also spent some time working on an acute care unit (with people that were recovering from surgery).

After working directly with patients for seven years, I transitioned my career into the field of nursing education. I still worked with patients, but now teaching others how to care for them. I have coordinated and taught Certified Nurse Aide, Patient Care Technician, and Practical Nursing. I have also spent time working as a nurse manager.

I wanted to become a Registered Nurse since I was a little girl, it was both a dream and a calling. It took me a very long time to become one. I began taking pre-nursing classes at a local community college and became an Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) while in pre-nursing school. I was able to gain some experience caring for people as an EMT. I remember one day I had to transport a cancer patient to his radiation appointment. When the doors opened to the cancer unit at the hospital, I had an overwhelming feeling in my heart that oncology was the specialty I wanted to pursue when I became a nurse. The day came when I was accepted into a 2-year nursing school program. I took it day by day and class by class. Eventually that day of graduation which seemed so out of reach was here. I graduated nursing school and passed my NCLEX-RN (board) exam; I was finally a Registered Nurse! I began working in the hospital, in oncology, and while doing so, took classes online to earn my bachelor’s degree in nursing. The rest is history…and history in the making.

If you know in your heart that nursing is your calling, you can do it just like I did!