Dr. Dorothy Kergin Award

My philosophy of “healing yourself is connected with healing others” solidified during my senior year of high school when I became a family caregiver to a loved one.  This experience fostered my understanding in the value and the impact of compassionate care to care recipients who are at their most difficult and vulnerable time.  That connection and that relationship I built with my loved one not only changed me as a person, but also guided me to choose nursing.  At present, I am a registered nurse at an acute care hospital pursuing a Master of Nursing (MN) degree in the thesis stream in hopes of obtaining the skills and knowledge necessary to leverage nursing leadership, advocacy and research to improve patient care and health policies.

As a MN student, the more I embrace and explore the wide spectrum of nursing practice (e.g. leadership, mentorship, advocacy, research, innovation, and education), the more I appreciate the profession’s ability to transcend into all aspects of the health continuum and the healthcare system. While there are certainly tough days where a patient passes away, my team is working short-staffed on an over-census unit, or I am pulling an all-nighter writing a research report, it is in those days that I turn to that mantra and that caregiving experience.  When my loved one would express her gratitude for my care during that difficult time, I would always assert that it is me who must thank her as she was the one who paved my road to nursing.