Hi! My name is Diana Tran and I’m an RN. I graduated from UC San Diego in 2015 with a BS in Public Health and went on to get my BS in Nursing at Marymount University in 2018. Becoming a nurse was definitely not on my list of dream jobs in kindergarten (although I can’t say I’ve given up my dreams of becoming a unicorn princess just yet). But one year into it, I can’t imagine doing anything else! Especially when it’s a career that can fund my milk tea addiction. Actually, that pretty much sums it up for me: save lives and drink milk tea while doing it.
Q: How long have you been working as a nurse?
A: I’ve been a nurse for 1 year!
Q: What is your favorite part about being a nurse?
A: My favorite part about being a nurse is seeing my patients recover and knowing that I was part of the care team.
Q: What do you feel is the hardest part about your career?
A: I think the hardest part is pain management for my patients. A lot of them come in with different levels of pain & pain tolerance. It’s always difficult to watch a patient not be able to effectively cope with their pain using pharmaceutical/non-pharmaceutical pain relievers. As nurses we really have to advocate for our patients and try different approaches to help them best manage their pain. It’s easy to overlook a patient who has a history of complaints about constant pain but as nurses we have to show compassion and remember that pain is highly subjective. So when our patient tells us their pain is still 10/10 after we gave a pain medication, we work with them to find a better way to manage their pain.
Q: How did you know you wanted to become a nurse?
A: It wasn’t until my 4th year of college that I realized I wanted to be a nurse. I was a public health major and had a nurse guest speaker in one of my classes. She sounded so passionate about being a nurse and being at the bedside of a patient, giving hands on care. Hearing her talk about what it’s like to be a nurse sparked excitement in me to pursue a career that will allow me to help people heal every day.
Q: What were some things you wish before entering nursing school?
A: In terms of nursing school, I wish I figured out my studying technique earlier. I definitely struggled my first semester because I didn’t know how I best learned but after talking to peers about how they studied I made my own system that worked for me. Maybe it’ll work for you: I typed out all my PowerPoints on a google doc prior to class and added to it while the professors elaborated on the topic. Closer to the exam date, I printed out all my notes (it’ll be about 60- 80 pgs of notes per exam) and went over the notes highlighting important points and added side notes on parts I didn’t fully understand. Not going to lie, I did not read a single chapter of my textbooks... the only time I opened my textbook was to fact check but other than that, I felt like reading a whole chapter wasn’t an effective way for me to learn (but don’t tell your teachers I told you that!!).
Q: What advice do you have for any high school students interested in nursing?
A: My advice is to do what you guys are doing right now! Be curious, ask questions! Nursing school will be ROUGH. There are days when I felt defeated (especially after an exam, haha) and didn’t feel “good enough” to be a nurse. But every time I went to clinical and provided hands on care for my patients I remember why I wanted to pursue nursing. It reminded me that I needed to study hard not only for myself but for my patients. As a nurse, there will be good days and bad days but one thing that should remain consistent is the care you provide.
Thank you Diana! Check out her Instagram @thaomyie to keep up with her!
Sincerely,
Laurel and Veronica
Meet Vivian Nguyen (RN, BSN, WHNP-S)
Hey! My name is Vivian and I am a L&D nurse and a Women’s Health NP student! I started college as a biology pre-med student, but discovered that wasn’t for me and I switched to nursing, and it was the best choice ever! I have a passion for women’s reproductive health and I always knew I wanted to work with the female population in medicine.
Q: How long have you been working as a nurse?
A: I’ve been a nurse for a little over a year!
Q: What specialty do you currently work in?
A: I work in Labor & Delivery.
Q: What is your favorite part about being a nurse?
A: My favorite part of being a nurse is helping others!
Q: What do you feel is the hardest part about your career?
A: The hardest part is when families lose their baby and helping them through the process.
Q: What does a typical work day look like for you?
A: Every day is different at work but typically I come in and I either have a patient who is in labor already or I’m starting an induction of labor.
Q: How did you know you wanted to become a nurse?
A: I knew I wanted to become a nurse because it aligns with my future personal and professional goals! I want to be able to work in healthcare and help others while still being able to pursue more in nursing.
Q: What were some things you wish before entering nursing school?
A: Before entering nursing school, I wish I knew how important it is to have work experience throughout nursing school and the importance of building relationships and networking with professors, instructors, and nurses and managers in clinical.
Q: What classes do you recommend taking in order to become a nurse?
A: I recommend taking any health or science classes in high school as APs or IB to get college credit!
Thank you Vivian! You can keep up with Vivian through her Instagram @viv_obnurse and her TikTok @viv_obnurse for videos about nursing.
Sincerely,
Laurel and Veronica
Meet Linden Wu (RN, BSN, MSN, PhD)
Hey guys, Laurel here! This interview is with my sister Linden. She has inspired me in so many ways; she’s hardworking, passionate about her field, always pushes herself to be the best person she can, and is one of the reasons that I would like to pursue nursing.
Q: What specialties have you worked in and what specialty do you currently work in?
A: I currently work as a Clinical Integration Specialist in the Office of Quality Improvement at a hospital. My role is to coordinate clinical quality improvement initiatives throughout the organization and champion for evidence-based standards and best practices.
My previous job was an informatics nurse. I helped support the hospital’s technological.clinical initiatives, assessed nursing and provider electronic medical record (EMR) workflow, and educated end-users of new technological functionalities.
Prior to being an informatics nurse, I worked as a staff psychiatric nurse. I had the privilege of caring for patients and advocating for their health needs. As a staff nurse, I was involved with evidence based practice projects such as implementing the use of a multi sensory room to decrease patient agitation and anxiety levels.
In addition to my clinical work, I have a passion for research, which lead me to pursue my MSN and PhD. My dissertation examined technology usage in dating violence and detrimental mental health outcomes. I have been the recipient of multiple fellowships supported by the National Institute of Health, Jonas Nurse Scholars Program, Jewish Healthcare Foundation, and a fellowship with the GetWellNetwork’s O’Neil Center focusing on patient engagement using technologic tools. I have also participated in federally-funded research studies with well-established mentors, and presentations at the local, state, national, and international levels.
Q: What was the most memorable experience you've had so far in your career?
A: One of my most memorable experiences was shadowing/helping during a hospital’s “Go-Live” process as part of my MSN clinical experience. This “Go-Live” was special since the hospital was converting from a paper-based documentation process to an all electronic documentation process. I helped teach and educate the staff as appropriate. I also helped my clinical preceptor and the Go-Live team create educational tools, pamphlets, binders, and training manuals for stand. I also participated in “Rounding” which is going onto the units to support and trouble shoot and questions that the hospital stand (i.e. physicians, nurses, milieu staff etc.) may have.
Q: What does a typical work day look like for you?
A: I do not have a typical work-day. My work-day depends on various projects I am coordinating at any given time. For example, I may be working very closely with clinical staff on any initiative their units or departments are developing. Other days, I may be doing research or creating data analysis and reports. Sometimes my days can be filled with meetings.
Q: What helped you the most to get you through nursing school?
A: I loved participating in extracurriculars as a way to de-stress from nursing school and make friends at the University and beyond. I spearheaded a volunteer initiative that merged technology and health at a local under-served community. I served as secretary for my Resident Student Association (RSA) to plan monthly social events for 700+ college students. I also served on the National Association of College and University Residence Halls (NACURH) Bid committee which proposed and won the bid to host the NACURH Annual Conference at my University. For the NACURH Annual Conference, I planned and budgeted events for 3,000+ participants as the Hospitality and Socials Chair.
Besides social-extracurricular activities, I was passionate about helping the greater community through research initiatives. Thus, I participated in my School of Nursing’s undergraduate mentorship research program (UMRP). Through the program, I collaborated with community partners to collect, input and analyze data to examine gender, racial, and school difference in a high school student’s knowledge about teen dating violence. During my UMRP, I was the recipient of three University Honor’s College Fellowship Awards, and presented research posters at local, state, national, and international conferences.
Q: What would you say the most important qualities of a nurse are?
A: As a nurse/nursing student, patient and family care has always been near and dear to my heart. Some of the most important qualities a nurse can have are empathy, love, and care to build a bond of trust with the patients. Thus as an undergraduate nursing student, I worked as a part time “Guardian Angel Liaison” for a hospital’s Adult Heart, Lung, Liver, Kidney, Pancreas and Intestinal transplant department. I facilitated communication amongst patients, transplant clinical team, and the Organ Referral Center stand regarding patients. I coordinated any concerns with the transplant team to improve both patients’ and families’ experiences and satisfaction, as well as decrease their stress and anxiety levels.
Q: What advice do you have for any high school students interested in nursing?
A: Do not be afraid to ask for help if you have any questions or to voice your ideas and opinions. Many of the opportunities I experienced were the result of my networking with my School of Nursing professors/peers, the University campus student leaders, and hospital staff/clinical mentors. Nursing is an ever-evolving profession. Whether you have a passion for clinical work, teaching, research, technology, management, or business, nursing encompasses all the job descriptions and more. I was working with a career coach, and he described me as a “Niche-Maker” nurse. Merriam-Webster defines “Niche” as a place, employment, status, or activity for which a person or thing is best fitted. Thus a “Niche-Maker” is someone who creates something that best suits them and their abilities. This is the perfect term to describe nurses because there is never a “one size fits all” term to describe the nursing profession. As a nurse, you can build your career any way you want it to be.
Q: What were some things you wish before entering nursing school?
A: Nursing school has helped me overcome so many of my fears. As a child, I was always afraid of blood, gore, and needles. There were days that I struggled through my science courses as a nursing student, and thought that I may have failed a test or course. But do not let any of those fears or struggles deter you from entering nursing school. As a nursing student, there will be long days shadowing for your clinical hours, and you will have late nights working on your nursing care plans. There were definitely days I wanted to give up, and call it quits. Through each trial and tribulation, tears and happiness, nursing school will help you create beautiful bonds of friendship that will last you a lifetime and beyond.
Thank you so much Linden for answering our questions. We hope this provided some insight into nursing and the different opportunities available to nursing students!
Sincerely,
Laurel and Veronica
Meet Tricia Ysabelle (RN, BSN)
Hi, I’m Trish! I’m a California based surgical ICU nurse and creative. I love to mix my two passions through storytelling in photos and empowering through education. I hope to inspire women to feel confident in their professional roles and empowered in balancing their wellbeing ✨
Q:
How long have you been working as a nurse?A: It’s been three years since I started working!
Q: What specialty do you currently work in?
A: I work in a surgical ICU! I deal with a lot of transplants as well.
Q: What do you think are the most challenging aspects of meeting patients' needs?
A: Balancing what they need from a clinical perspective and the patient wants (being their advocate yet knowing when to put your foot down)
Q: What would you say the most important qualities of a nurse are?
A: 1. Empathetic
2. Patient
3. Eager to learn
Q: How did you end up choosing to work in the ICU?
A: When I was in the 8th grade, my grandpa got really sick and ended up in the ICU. When I went to visit him, I was scared. I didn’t quite know if he was breathing on his own or if the ventilators were doing all the work. It was scary seeing him hooked up to all the different machines. I want family members to not feel that way. I want them to feel empowered and so I went into ICU with the plan to educate families and keep them in the loop so they can make informed decisions or just feel even the slightest bit better being in the know.
Q: Do you have any time management/studying tips?
A: Block your time out and be discipled about it! (Yes, this even means bathroom breaks) Continue to show up for yourself even when you don't feel like you got it down pat. If something isn’t working, try to change the angle: study outside if you really can’t study indoors anymore. Take a 5 min break.
Q: What were some things you wish before entering nursing school?
A: It’s okay to not know everything. If you don’t know ask. If you want to be involved and a part of something ask. Some doors won’t open unless you seek out the opportunities!
Q: What was your favorite part of UCLA nursing school?
A: My friends! They made nursing school worthwhile. Honorable mention would be being in LA and getting both the big college feel with the small cozy nursing school program where everyone knew each other. In my program there were only 50 in a graduating class!
Thank you so much Tricia for your wonderful responses! Follow Tricia on her Instagram @triciaysabelle and subscribe to her YouTube Channel (TriciaYsabelle) for weekly videos about nursing, fitness, and everything in between!
Sincerely,
Laurel and Veronica
