I recently earned my BSN, graduating from XXXX College of Nursing this 2016. Since the latter part of 2015, I have been acquiring my first direct experience in nursing, working in Occupational Health, serving as a First Aid/ Onsite Triage RN, caring for employees, providing first aid, documentation, drug testing, and supervision of employees for Occupational Health Services (OHS). I have also built and managed my clinic working alongside several associates in various areas. I remain actively engaged with the XXXX Anti-Aging Center in XXXX and my position in Occupational Health.
Caring for the skin of those suffering from chemotherapy and radiation brings me the greatest joy in the anti-aging business. I have been nursing people unofficially at the center since 2007; a Cosmetic Nurse Injector, I have made a point to learn everything I can about micro-pigmentation. As a Reiki Practitioner, I emphasize the importance of holistic care. I also draft assessments and treatment plans with accurate documentation.
With the OHS, I work primarily in a trailer outside a large construction site administering drug testing, providing first aid and vaccinations, flu clinics, etc., as called for. At the anti-aging center, my work focuses primarily on weight loss, Botox and Dermal fillers/ IPL treatments, photo facials, medical-grade skin peels, and assisting local plastic surgeons; we help people look, feel young and thoroughly enjoy life. I have also developed and maintained our website and blog and ensured HIPAA/ OSHA compliance. Our weight loss program includes weekly coaching and medication administration, which has helped me develop my leadership skills. Although this is not traditional nursing, I use my nursing skills daily by providing physical and health assessments.
Earning my MSN degree is a personal and career goal close to my heart. This is especially true since my chosen area of specialization, Psychiatric Nursing, is close to my heart. What makes me most unique as a nurse and a candidate for graduate school in nursing is that my mother and all three of my siblings are bipolar. I have spent my childhood, adolescence, and adult life constantly engaging with bipolarity and the issues to which it often gives rise. As a graduate student in Psychiatric Nursing, I hope to focus much of my research on bipolarity. I am a very dedicated nurse committed to lifelong learning. I look forward to decades of excellence in hands-on care and filling administrative roles as a nursing leader. Earning my MSN will inspire me to think more creatively and have more authority to speak on behalf of my patients and attend to their needs as a patient advocate and a nurse.
My first professional position as a nurse was at XXXX University Outpatient Psychiatry. Since then, I have cultivated a profound and wide-ranging interest in nursing care for the mentally ill. Thus, I have my sights set on becoming a Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner to be able to evaluate and diagnose mental illness and prescribe medication, giving my all every day to provide treatment to patients who suffer from depression, anxiety, and other mental health conditions, particularly those conditions that benefit from counseling services.
Bipolarity was made worse in my family due to poor coping skills. We needed help and counseling, and we were unaware of it, at least when I was still a child and adolescent. The complexity of substance abuse also engages my mind, born from my heart, since life with my mom involved parties. The most significant trauma I experienced was coming home from school in ninth grade to find our home sold, and my mother moved away with no forwarding address. My parents were already divorced, and my father became absent. Luckily, I had an aunt who became my grounding rock for many years. However, age of 6, she shot herself in the face and died instantly.
All my siblings have a dual diagnosis of bipolar and substance abuse. I feel fortunate that I requested to be put into therapy at twelve. As an adult and single parent, I came home one day to a house that had burned down, and we had nowhere to live. At that time, I cared for my sister’s child, who was six months old and born an addict. All of this has contributed heavily to my passion for mental health nursing.
XXXX College is everything that I am looking for in an MSN Program. It is my first choice for graduate study primarily because of my sheer admiration for your curriculum's sophisticated, in-depth, and wide-ranging nature, especially in Psychiatric Nursing. I am very self-disciplined and familiar with online education. The master's program at XXXX will allow me to obtain my degree online and learn and study at home as I continue to meet my professional responsibilities. Regis College has the kind of reputation that I am looking for: challenging you academically so that you can become a leader in your chosen area of nursing. I heard about XXXX through my sister, who obtained her nursing degree at XXXX College, and I have also had co-workers who earned their degrees at XXXX.
I am familiar with online learning. After graduating in June 2015 with my ASD in Nursing, I immediately enrolled in an online BSN program beginning in September 2015. Although they suggested two classes a semester, I challenged myself with three courses per semester and graduated with honors and a 3.85 GPA in July 2016. At the same time, I ran my own business and attended my daughter’s basketball games twice weekly in Connecticut.
I am incredibly proud that I volunteer as a motivational speaker for a women’s forum several times a year. I excel at and seek to enhance relationship building and the art of persuasive conversation by learning to see situations from multiple perspectives. My letters of recommendation from my position at XXXX University’s Outpatient Psychiatric used words such as” and “compassionate.” With over thirty years of experience dealing with people in healthcare settings, I have learned how to make people feel comfortable in conversations. I can work independently and excel at teamwork. Early on in my life, when I was employed by the airlines, I held the position of Shop Steward for Teamsters Local 25. I can see both sides of a story, grounded in my experience as a participant in labor negotiations. One of my strengths is my strong work ethic. When I commit to a deadline, I do whatever it takes to deliver. I am good at finding a better way of doing things if necessary. I have excellent time management skills and thrive through change and adaptation.
As a nursing student, I was nominated as class spokesperson and honored to be chosen to speak for the class at the graduation ceremony. One of the most challenging experiences I encountered was standing up to a nurse who attempted to bully me as a student nurse. After speaking with her, she apologized. When I got to class the next day, my clinical instructor, program director, and professor congratulated me. We were given much more independence during my last clinical rotation, and I had four patients to care for. Some tents could not handle their own four patients, so I was given the leadership position of helping them with their patients while attending to my own. I am particularly good at multitasking and getting things accomplished. I can think on my feet while in motion and apply it immediately. Obtaining my MSN will give me the opportunity for advancement, including earning the DNP and becoming a recognized expert in the nursing care of bipolar patients. In five to ten years, I hope to have accumulated sufficient knowledge and experience to mentor and do research to help advance the field of psychiatric nursing.