For a very long time, I thought I wanted to be a lawyer. Both of my parents are nurses so I wanted to feel like I was creating my own path and not just following in someone else's footsteps. Up until my senior year of high school, I hardly knew anything about nursing. For my senior project, I was required to donate my time to the community. I could not find any volunteer work in the field of law so I chose to donate my time at the convalescent hospital my stepfather worked in. I shadowed nurses and interacted with a variety of patients. I was incredibly amazed at how good the nurses were. I was amazed at not only the medical aspects of their jobs but also at how natural and kind they were when caring for their patients. It took a while for me to register in my head that this is what my parents did every single day. The people I am admiring right now are no different than my parents.
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I began volunteering at a rehabilitation center for people with mental and physical disabilities. I was assigned to the children & teens department. I learned how to communicate with nonverbal children and discovered different techniques that allowed me to be the arms and legs for children who are paralyzed from the neck down.
My interaction with the children at the center further solidified my desire to take care of others and opened up a new interest for me: pediatrics. In 2013, I began volunteering at UCSF Children's Hospital every Sunday. I am mostly assigned to the playroom where I supervise a safe play area for patients and provide relief for parents who need a break. I am also responsible for bedside visits when a patient is too sick or weak to come into the playroom. I have been coming here every week for almost three years and plan to do so until my schedule no longer permits me
I began volunteering at a rehabilitation center for people with mental and physical disabilities. I was assigned to the children & teens department. I learned how to communicate with nonverbal children and discovered different techniques that allowed me to be the arms and legs for children who are paralyzed from the neck down.
My interaction with the children at the center further solidified my desire to take care of others and opened up a new interest for me: pediatrics. In 2013, I began volunteering at UCSF Children's Hospital every Sunday. I am mostly assigned to the playroom where I supervise a safe play area for patients and provide relief for parents who need a break. I am also responsible for bedside visits when a patient is too sick or weak to come into the playroom. I have been coming here every week for almost three years and plan to do so until my schedule no longer permits me