-: The best advice that I would give,
is to make sure that you do what you're passionate about
and what you really care about.
When I graduated from Temple,
the only thing that I knew clearly,
was that I wanted to be a pediatric nurse.
I knew that I loved children
and I knew that I loved pediatric nursing
and that stayed with me and that never wavered.
In terms of community engagement
and social determinants of health,
that was something that came to me later,
as I had increased knowledge,
about the struggles and about the goals of my parents
and the children with whom I'm working with.
So, the best advice that I can give,
is be passionate about what you're doing.
Certainly if you want to be a researcher,
it's very important to get an advanced degree.
If you wanna be an advanced practice nurse,
an advanced degree in Advanced Practice.
But basically, to just always be committed
to what it is that you're doing.
So I believe that all students
need to be engaged in the community,
regardless of where they're going to practice,
because it's relevant for everyone.
All students need to learn
how to address social determinants of health.
All nurses need to address social determinants of health.
Whether they're working in the community
or whether they're working in an intensive care unit.
So, in terms of being a community health nurse,
and that's not what I am,
I'm an acute care pediatric trained nurse
and I work at a hospital.
But, the knowledge that I've gained
and the relationships that I've made,
working in the community
and addressing social determinants of health
have greatly enhanced my practice.
But whether you wanna be a community health nurse,
I think I would tell everyone
to spend some time in the community
and see if that's your calling.