荔枝视频

Marina Neal, from Vancouver, BC, is entering her third year at U荔枝视频 Nursing. She鈥檚 been involved in several leadership initiatives at the university since her first year, and is always busy exploring new nursing opportunities in her free time. From co-chair of the Year One Nursing Council to mentor with the Leadership and Student Engagement Office, Marina has nearly done it all.

Why nursing?

鈥淢y dad was a firefighter and my aunt was a psychiatric nurse, and I always loved hearing stories about their patients,鈥� Marina said. As a swimmer and certified lifeguard, she also enjoyed learning first aid and was excited to transfer those skills to a career in health care.

Interestingly, Marina was originally hoping to enter biology and study medicine at UBC, however she quickly realized that this was not the career for her. 鈥淚 thought, 鈥業 don鈥檛 really like chemistry, or physics, or calculus, and I really don鈥檛 think I could do four years of this.鈥欌�� After many discussions with family and friends, Marina realized that the person-oriented and hands-on nature of nursing would be much more fulfilling for her. She added: 鈥淚n nursing, you really get to know your patients.鈥� 

What experiences have prepared you for nursing? 

Marina continues to work as a lifeguard and responds to emergencies on a daily basis. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a great experience for anybody who鈥檚 trying to dip their toes into first aid.鈥� She was also tutoring casually throughout the school year, something she highly recommends to students looking for flexible and rewarding work hours. Marina also spent three years volunteering at a local nursing home in BC. 鈥淚 really liked working with seniors,鈥� she shared. Her role included planning games, organizing dinners and keeping her residents company. 

Following her first year of nursing, Marina was hired to provide comfort to clients in private homes, performing many duties similar to a Health Care Aide (HCA). However, without the proper experience and training, Marina unfortunately felt very underprepared for the high demand of the role. 鈥淚t was good in the sense that I was super prepared for Term 4, but it was bad in the sense that I didn鈥檛 actually know how to work in a private home.鈥� She often found herself practicing outside her scope, which was especially challenging without the proper support. 鈥淚f something happens, there鈥檚 no one but you and the client,鈥� she said. 鈥淭hat led to a lot of problems.鈥� 

In this setting, Marina was also able to learn a lot about how to advocate for her clients, as well as herself.

As much as getting experience is good, don鈥檛 practice outside your scope. If you haven鈥檛 learned it, be honest.

"If it鈥檚 going to affect you, it鈥檚 going to affect patients,鈥� she advised.

What other work opportunities have you had this year? 

Marina is currently in the process of applying for an internship with the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI). She was recommended for this opportunity after connecting with her Term 3 clinical instructor, who helped provide Marina with lots of support during her application. 鈥淪he took the time to set up a Zoom call with me, and helped me tailor my resume and graphic design portfolio.

鈥淭he job is in nursing informatics,鈥� she explained. 鈥淚鈥檒l get spreadsheets full of statistics, and it鈥檚 my job to create graphics and designs to make it easier for someone in a non-nursing field to understand.鈥�

How was your student experience? 

In Term 3, Marina worked with the Morley Indigenous population for her clinical placement. 鈥淭hey were really welcoming to us, but we only actually ended up visiting three times throughout the semester because of COVID.鈥� She said that her group did a lot of learning over Zoom, watching documentaries and listening to guest speakers, but she did recall a good memory from the placement. 鈥淚 remember we only had 45 minutes to get lunch and get to the community, even though it was a 50-minute drive. We were definitely not doing a very legal speed on the highway, and I remember laughing with everyone about trying to be careful but still arrive on-time. It was so fun.鈥�

For Marina, Term 4 looked very different. On Thursdays, her clinical group worked for four hours rather than the typical eight. 鈥淢y instructor couldn鈥檛 spend more than four hours at a time on her foot as she had just had surgery,鈥� she explained. The remainder of clinical was spent on Zoom debriefing, discussing class content and asking the instructor questions. 鈥淪he was excellent at connecting what we were learning in clinical to what we were covering in theory,鈥� Marina said.

What were the biggest challenges throughout the year?

Marina found that the HCAs and RNs she was working with could either make or break her clinical experience. She shared that while many nurses in Term 4 provided a great learning experience, there were many times when her group felt left in the dark. Remembering a particular experience, she said, 鈥淲e were told to perform a shower with a resident, but we hadn鈥檛 yet learned how to properly assist with showers in lab. We basically flooded the bathroom floor.鈥�

Marina shared that the first few weeks of Term 4 were especially difficult without having all the required training in personal care. She felt that staff often seemed disappointed that students couldn鈥檛 help right away, and it was challenging only being able to observe when more help was needed. Marina also learned that once shift started, people typically wouldn鈥檛 slow down for students. 鈥淵ou have to be confident,鈥� she said. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e not going to hold your hand.鈥�

Marina also stressed that despite all the burnout from COVID-19 and the challenges of nurses delivering care during the pandemic, it鈥檚 important for future students not to be discouraged. 鈥淔or prospective nursing students who hear these things鈥搃t is getting better, and there is hope.鈥� 

You鈥檙e from BC 鈥� how was living on-campus?

Although Marina enjoyed being close to campus, her biggest challenge quickly became roommates. While she was initially worried that living with fellow nurses might be difficult, she realized that it could have greatly improved her experience. 鈥淚t would have made it a lot easier. Your schedules are going to be fairly similar, and you鈥檒l be there to support each other,鈥� she shared. Marina added that different lifestyles between roommates can become challenging to navigate. 鈥淚 would come home from a four-hour clinical, hop on Zoom for another four hours, and finish exhausted. My roommates wanted to blare music on a Thursday evening, and I just wanted to sleep.鈥� Since clinical practice is an especially unique student experience, Marina also felt it was difficult to try debriefing with those who couldn鈥檛 share the same experiences. 鈥淣ot everyone understands, and sometimes they would just think things were funny.鈥�

To future students, Marina recommends joining a Facebook group for your graduating class. 鈥淢eet people and reach out. Don鈥檛 be afraid.鈥� Marina stressed that building those connections within nursing can be really important for when you just need someone to talk to. Regardless of her personal experience, she also advised students not to be discouraged about finding roommates. 鈥淵ou鈥檒l always know somebody with a bad roommate story, but it doesn鈥檛 mean it鈥檚 going to be you.鈥�

What are your future plans for nursing? 

鈥淔or the longest time, I thought I wanted to do paediatrics,鈥� Marina said. 鈥淣ow I鈥檓 leaning more towards Informatics.鈥� After speaking with others and becoming inspired by a guest speaker during one of her lectures, Marina has also been very interested in law. 鈥淚鈥檝e considered becoming a medical malpractice lawyer,鈥� she shared. Marina has already written a practice LSAT exam, and was very proud of her results. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 the best thing about nursing: there are so many options.鈥� 

Rapid fire! 

Best place to study on campus? 鈥淭FDL, 4th floor. Walk to the very back and there鈥檚 a bunch of private rooms no one knows about!鈥� 

Extra-curriculars? 鈥淎ny program by the Leadership and Student Engagement Office at the university.鈥� Marina recommends Leadership on Demand and the Emerging Leaders Program.

Self-care? 鈥淚 call it, 鈥榝our days on, three days off.鈥� I always just try to reserve some time during the week for myself.鈥� 

Biggest role models? 鈥淢y dad. He鈥檚 changed career paths three different times, and is super inspiring. And also my mom, who built herself up from the ground to where she is today.鈥� 

Plans for the summer? 鈥淲orking, trying to relax, and enjoying the sun. I鈥檒l also be starting a small business.鈥� Marina currently runs an Etsy website, where she initially began her passion for graphic design. 鈥淧eople contact me to design things for them to put them on anything they want,鈥� she explained. Check out Marina鈥檚 website

Marina鈥檚 final words

鈥淒on鈥檛 be afraid to meet people! You will make friends outside of your major and in all sorts of different years. Extracurriculars are by far one of the best ways to make friends.鈥�

Thanks for the Flex, Marina!