GALLERY: Nursing Alumni Share Experience from the Front Lines
May 06, 2020The University of Mount Union’s direct-entry Bachelor of Science in Nursing program has produced a wide array of successful nurses in its time on campus. See the gallery below to see just a few perspectives from nurses on the front lines.
Allison Baird '19, Coronary ICU Nurse, Cleveland Clinic
"I really felt like I was able to connect with professors and have more one on one time to understand concepts. I LOVE the professors. They are the reason why I’m the nurse I am today. I am always and forever grateful for the opportunities at mount Union. I think the largest way the pandemic has impacted my career is patients not being allowed to see their loved ones. In my unit, hard decisions are made every day about code status, goals of care are discussed, and hard decisions about the patient’s lives."
Hadleigh (Rundell ’17) Douglas, Clinical Informatics Specialist and Critical Care RN, Knox Community Hospital
"All of the professors were eager to help us succeed and cared about us as people, not just students. I am pleased to still keep in contact with most of them even years after graduation. The COVID-19 pandemic has increased workloads for many people in the hospital setting. My work, due to the pandemic, has included surge planning in preparation for the hospital to accommodate higher than usual patient volumes."
Hailee Ellinwood ’17, RN, UH Hospitals, Rainbow Babies and Children’s
"I feel that Mount Union helped shape me into who I am today. Some of my favorite memories come from my experiences at Mount Union and I made friendships that will last a lifetime. The nursing program was well designed and prepared me for the NCLEX. Pediatrics is not the patient population that appears to be heavily affected from the coronavirus. In my unit, we have not been affected from the virus itself, but we have been affected due to low census and cancelling elective surgical cases."
Leanne Heupel ’19, RN, Akron Children’s Hospital
"Getting through Mount Union’s nursing program was the hardest thing I have done so far. I was blessed enough to have multiple professors and my parents who never let me give up on my dream. I am thankful that my professors pushed me and prepared me to be the nurse I am today. The hardest adjustment from COVID—19 has been implementing rules that only allow one parent at the bedside at a time. It feels like we are separating parents from their newborn and from bonding together as a family. As hard as it is, we are always advocating for what is best for our patients."
Dana Lautenschlager ’18, RN-MICU, Cleveland Clinic Hillcrest Hospital
"As usual I was nervous to take the NCLEX exam, but I felt as though the Mount Union nursing program prepared me so well for that! By the time it was “study time” I was really just reviewing everything the teachers have pounded in my head the last four years. COVID-19 has had a huge impact on our unit. We have large numbers of coronavirus cases in our unit. All of us have been required to take classes on proning patients (although we’re all rock stars at it now) because it is something that has been used so much to help the lungs in some of the sicker COVID cases."
Sabrina Ochoa ’19, RN, Cleveland Clinic Akron General
"Mount Union nursing helped me get where I wanted to be and set me up in my career for life! My unit has expanded our beds into another unit which we now staff due to the high influx of cardiac patients during this time. We have been working very hard to keep high spirits and help each other out."
Stone Sailing ’17, Travel Nurse
"The nursing program taught me so much and turned me into the nurse that I am today. I learned to become more independent and how to care for myself. The COVID-19 has impacted me in the way that I have actually cared for the people who are sick and realized the seriousness of the virus. I've just learned to be more precautious in these times and do my best to prevent from spreading the infection from myself to my close family members."
Liz Slifka ’19, RN, Cleveland Clinic Hillcrest Hospital
"COVID-19 has had a large impact on our critical care areas, and the hospital in general. My unit has been taking COVID patients when the ICU becomes full. Taking care of these patients and spending significant amounts of the day in personal protection equipment has been exhausting. Since the ICU is the unit primarily taking the COVID patients, we have been receiving many ICU patients that we don’t usually care for. This has allowed for a variety of patient conditions that I am not usually exposed to in my unit. Although the last few weeks/months have been busy and exhausting, I have been trying to look at the positive that this has allowed me to care for a different variety of patients which comes with new knowledge and experience."
Shannon Titus ’19, Nurse Manager, Bethany Village
"All of the professors were so fantastic in the nursing program! I give them all the credit! They taught me more than I could’ve ever imagined, and I am eternally grateful to them. It has been a challenge with COVID-19 for family members not being able to see their parents. I spend a good chunk of my day talking with family members and listening to them and reassuring them their family member is doing the best they can during this pandemic. We have reached out to family members and encouraged FaceTime so the residents get to see their family members in some way."
Annie Zielasko ’19, ICU RN, Akron City Hospital
"I loved being a part of nursing at Mount Union. I learned so much from the simulations and labs. I also loved being able to go seek help from any of my professors anytime I needed! This pandemic has impacted our work greatly. Having to wear the proper PPE while providing patient care is essential. Our floor has become ICU overflow to provide enough rooms for all of our COVID (+) or rule out COVID patient population. All of our employees are struggling but we are overcoming the situation by working together as a team."
Bryanna Aldrich ’19, RN, Cleveland Clinic Hillcrest Hospital ICU
"Caring for COVID-19 patients has impacted the way we provide care for our patients. With a no visitation policy in place at the hospital, it has made it more difficult for patients and families to cope with their diagnosis. It has become even more important for us as nurses to be there for the patients, but also to keep family informed to provide them with a sense of security as well. "
Jason Hadley ’19, RN, Akron Children’s Hospital
"The thing that I loved most about the nursing program at Mount is the relationships I made with classmates. We became a family in our four years. It has been hard to be apart from my family and friends, but I try to focus on what a blessing it is that my family is healthy during this time. My coworkers are always willing to lend a helping hand and I go to work knowing I am part of an amazing team."
Sydney Moats ’19, RN, Aultman Hospital
"The pandemic we are facing has brought many changes to the health care system, and new changes are happening daily, sometimes multiple revisions to policies within hours. The most obvious change that would be seen by the public is the use of masks through an entire 12-hour shift. "
Katie Vance ’18, RN, Cleveland Clinic Main Campus
"Mount Union's nursing program met all my expectations and more. I loved the small class sizes, being able to communicate with my professors at all times of the day, and clinical placements in the Northeast Ohio area. I definitely received a well-rounded nursing foundation and education from Mount. The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted my workplace in many different ways. Volunteering opportunities have been offered through my institution to provide help to other hospitals, states, and individuals affected by COVID-19. In my undergraduate academic career, material was covered regarding pandemics and what happens when public health emergencies occur. It has been crazy to observe what I learned in the classroom at Mount and see what I learn be applied in the real-life setting, not to mention around the world."
Alex Wesely ’19, RN, Duke University Hospital
"I really enjoyed how small our class sizes were. It allowed for a lot of discussions, time for questions, and availability of professors to help me with things I didn’t understand. Mount Union taught me how to grow from challenges. Nursing school was extremely difficult, but it contributed immensely to my growth into a young professional. It taught me that with enough hard work anything is possible. Since so many of our patients are immunocompromised, we don’t see any COVID-19 patients. Due to many of our surgeries being somewhat elective our census has been low which has led me being cancelled or floated to different units for one of my three shifts a week."