Taking a shot at nursing

High school students experience career options firsthand

Spring Valley Hospital, 5400 S. Rainbow Blvd., hosted Camp Wannabeanurse on Oct. 3. The event allowed high school students to shadow nurses throughout the day. Left, Brianda Lopez puts on gear with the help of registered nurse Brandy Hartman. They were preparing to go into the operating room to witness a Caesarean section. Below, Lopez helps Hartman check a newborn?s vital signs.PHOTOS BY MARLENE KARAS/VIEW Spring Valley Hospital, 5400 S. Rainbow Blvd., hosted Camp Wannabeanurse on Oct. 3. The event allowed high school students to shadow nurses throughout the day. Left, Brianda Lopez puts on gear with the help of registered nurse Brandy Hartman. They were preparing to go into the operating room to witness a Caesarean section. Below, Lopez helps Hartman check a newborn?s vital signs.PHOTOS BY MARLENE KARAS/VIEW Advertisement

"I want to be a nurse," said 15-year-old Crystal Jade Salvador as she stood in baby blue scrubs identical to the registered nurses beside her.

That was the mantra among the more than 20 high school students who recently got to see the ins and outs of a career in nursing during Camp Wannabeanurse, a program that started at Spring Valley Hospital last fall. The Nevada Hospital Association has since sent invitations to high schools throughout the valley to start the day camp in other area hospitals.

Students in the Clark County School District had a day off two weeks ago for district staff development, so students who showed an interest in nursing took the opportunity to learn more about the profession.

The group, mostly made up of girls, spent the morning in a classroom presentation where Spring Valley Hospital nurses spilled the details about the day-to-day job. In the afternoon, the group was split into various parts of the hospital, depending on each student's interest.

Isabel Lin and her two friends, who said they have a heart for children, were guided to the hospital's neonatal intensive care unit where they watched a Caesarean section.

"I either want to be a nurse or a pediatrician," said Isabel, a sophomore at Northwest Career and Technical Academy. "It'd be fun to help babies."

A nurse's work schedule is what peaked Brianda Lopez's interest in the field. Most nurses work long shifts three days a week with four days off.

"It's nice that nurses are not as busy as doctors," said Brianda, also a sophomore at Northwest Career and Technical Academy.

A few students said the daylong camp helped them realize that nursing isn't for them. But, for many of the students, the camp fueled their initial desires to one day work in a hospital.

A career in the medical field first caught Northwest Career and Technical Academy sophomore Unique Armendariz's attention when her mother went through medical school. Rancho High School freshman Sarah Finley said her aunt's stories as an occupational therapist drew her to the field.

"I want to be able to help people when they're really in trouble," Sarah said.

Unique and Sarah were taken through the hospital's psychiatric ward and emergency room. They visited with patients and shadowed nurses as they helped a patient with a bloody nose.

The two said they enjoy the energy of an emergency room, and the gore doesn't make them flinch.

"We were hoping, but we didn't get to see a lot of blood and guts," Sarah said with a grin.

Registered nurse Carolyn Hafen said she was happy to give students an inside look at nursing.

"When you're supposed to be a nurse, you just know it," Hafen said as she showed a group of girls how to check a patient's blood pressure. "There is such a shortage in the valley for nurses, so if these students have that excitement when they're young, we want to nurture that."