In honor of National Nurses Week, and as part of CHOC’s week-long celebration of our incredibly skilled and caring nursing staff, we asked several members of our nursing leadership team what advice they would offer to the next generation of nurses.
Melanie Patterson, senior vice president and chief nursing officer
What advice do you have for those pursuing their professional aspirations?
Recognize your strengths and spend time building on them. Don’t waste time focusing on your flaws; instead, strut your strengths! Know who you are and be that person always. Don’t beat yourself up when something doesn’t go perfectly. Sometimes, what we consider our biggest “mistakes” can make the biggest wake. Realize you make a wake, whether rough waters or not, so make that wake count. Showing your humility in the face of adversity is many times the best gift you can give another person or group.
Nancy Kraus, service line director of critical care, director of clinical education
What advice do you have for aspiring nurses?
In any profession there are a variety of roles and responsibilities you can have throughout your career. Typically you choose “A” and think you might progress to “B” or “C.” Don’t rule out “D thru Z.” Sometimes you find what you are most passionate about by stepping outside your comfort zone. Take every opportunity that is offered to you large and small – all will become growth experiences that help you progress personally and professionally. As a young nurse just starting my career I never would have imagined I would have had the opportunity to be a bedside care provider, a college professor, a national public speaker at conferences, a global health volunteer, a peer leader with my physician partners, assist in research, lead an organization to a Magnet award of excellence, mentor others, be “the neighborhood nurse,” and now a director over critical care. All of these opportunities came because early on I decide to say “yes” when opportunities were offered to me to try something new, when someone asked for help, when I joined a group project or chose to be engaged and participate outside of my primary position.
Alisa McCormick, nurse manager, pediatric intensive care unit
What is something you wish you would have known when you began your career?
I wish I would have had the advice that a friend gave me recently. The advice was to always have someone behind me that I am helping to grow and develop, and someone ahead of me that is a mentor, helping me to grow and develop. Embracing such a simple concept of balance as a new nurse would have helped me focus and develop my career much sooner. I waited over 20 years to return to school mostly out of fear. Returning to school allowed me to gain the skill and confidence to step out of my comfort zone, become a manager, participate in evidenced-based projects, lead hospital-wide initiatives, mentor and develop my staff, and most importantly support the development of a unit-based mentor program for new nurses in the PICU.
Susan See, nurse manager, neuroscience unit
What advice do you have for aspiring nurses?
Everyone has their own unique story. It is up to you to determine what your story looks like. Whether you are early in your career or you have been in healthcare for years, there is no better time than right now to keep your passion alive and active by embracing opportunities and striving to reach new goals. Decide what is most important to you, make deliberate choices, and run full force to attain your goals. There is something magically satisfying about doing what you love. It makes you better at what you do, and best of all, you will shine that satisfaction. Thoreau said, “Never look back unless you are planning to go that way”. Be uniquely you and continue to create what you want your story to look like!
