Investing in my future colleagues

In my second year of being a pediatric bedside nurse, I was approached on my unit and asked to precept a new nurse employee. I was so nervous about that request because, frankly, I did not feel that I knew enough at that time to teach someone else. I decided to precept, nevertheless, because I love a good challenge!

I embraced helping the new nurse navigate the everyday adventures of pediatrics. I was there by her side as she assessed patients, gave medications, completed treatments, and attended interdisciplinary meetings on behalf of patients. As the weeks progressed and I saw her gain knowledge and confidence, it became an experience that I was elated to have learned from and embraced. It felt like the beginning of something for me, although I didn’t quite know what that would look like yet. Little did I know that another opportunity would appear.

Two years later, an instructor from one of our local nursing programs asked me to teach a clinical group from her community college nursing program. This time I wasn’t as nervous, and I felt excited about the new opportunity. Much like my experience with precepting the new nurse, I guided the students through how to assess pediatric patients. I taught them the process of medication preparation and administration, as well as performing other skills. In our post-conference at the end of each shift, I observed the learning cycle. It was a great joy to see the connections the students made as they recounted the diagnoses, the skills, and the overall experience of providing care to children and their families.

On my home office wall, I have a constant reminder of my first experience being a clinical instructor—a picture of the first group of students I took to the pediatric hospital for their clinical rotation. As I look back on those experiences, I now see that they served as the foundation upon which my now nine-year career in nursing education was built. My interest in—and entry into—nursing education stemmed from my long-held desire to give back to a profession that gave me so much. To this day, I still remember my favorite nursing professors and clinical instructors who poured their knowledge and dedication into me. They challenged my critical thinking and ensured that I knew when I was making positive progress. That balance of challenge and encouragement was essential to my progression, so I desire to do the same.

I want my nursing students to know that I am one of many people in their lives making investments in them and their future careers as nurses. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, “investing” is an act of devoting one’s time, energy, and effort to endeavors or undertakings with the expectation that it will yield a worthful result. I tell my students, “I am so happy you all are here and that you all will be my future colleagues.” The intention is to set the stage for my students—informing them of their value and my willingness to do everything I can to ensure a rewarding learning experience. I want them to know that their future careers as nurses are essential to me. At the beginning of my nurse educator journey, this was my intention and continues to be even more critical today. Nursing is a complex but rewarding career and requires nurses who genuinely want to make a difference in the lives of those they serve. It is important to me, even now, to impart my expertise and experiences to a new generation of nurses that will be caring for an ever-growing population of patients with ever-growing needs. The pandemic, the spotlight on social injustices, the need for evidence-based gender-affirming medical care, and the heightened awareness of increasing health disparities are just a few of the current issues in healthcare that fuel my desire to educate students about during their nursing school journey. I want to be instrumental in helping them understand the importance of their awareness, knowledge, and actions when confronted with those issues. I want them to know how vital their voices and ideas are to healthcare as a whole and to the outcomes of their patients.

I’ve worked as a clinical adjunct faculty member, an instructor, a clinical assistant professor, and a student advisor. These various roles put me at the heart of educating and supporting nursing students. Throughout each experience, I’ve learned a great deal while dedicating my time and efforts to my students. I’ve learned that students thrive and are more resilient and open to learning when they feel heard, seen, and supported. Many of them are entering the profession because they were recipients of quality nursing care at some point in their own lives, or they’ve witnessed nurses providing quality care to others. I’ve learned the value of good communication, effective time management, and the power of student engagement.

I’ve had the pleasure of teaching many students in the past nine years, either in the classroom or in a clinical setting. One student comes to my mind when I think about their genuine desire to become a nurse. With so much family pressure to get their degree completed and some challenges that threatened to derail their first semester of nursing school, that student showed me a determination not only to be a nurse, but to be an excellent one. I saw the drive in their eyes and in their efforts to understand, apply the information learned from the lectures, and perform the learned skills effectively and safely. That student attended every review session, open lab, and advising meeting. While I was investing in their future, their actions showed me their dedication to investing in their own future.

Investing in my future colleagues is a personal mandate for me because I want to ensure that quality, dedicated, and compassionate providers are represented on the frontlines of healthcare. Additionally, I want to see my future colleagues lend their expertise and talents at the bedside or in other areas of healthcare if they choose to pursue advanced degrees. All the hours spent teaching, providing feedback, demonstrating skills, and advising contributes to student growth in the short and long term. Knowing they will continue to transform patient care from the bedside to subsequent roles in advanced practice is enough to make any nurse educator proud.

Nurses, I implore you to remember those who embraced you and your journey during your time as students. Give back to those who will care for patients, change policies, and advocate for healthcare. Be mindful of the immense responsibility of preparing students to enter our illustrious profession with the knowledge, skillset, and confidence needed to make a difference in this field for years to come.