Fridays with Fiona: A Conversation with Nurse Jenni

 

 

 

FIONA: What inspired you to become a nurse?

 

NURSE JENNI: So, when I was first in college I went to nursing school because I always wanted to be a nurse but… then I got scared.  It seemed overwhelming to me so I actually got my degree in something else and I didn’t go to nursing school until four years ago.  So first I was a teacher, then I had my babies and then I decided to go to nursing school.  I realized that was what I really wanted to do – I was too scared to do it back then but I said “I’m going to do it now!” Also, my youngest daughter was really sick when she was little and the nurses were so wonderful at the hospital that it reignited my passion to go back to nursing.

 

FIONA: What is your favorite healthy food and what is your favorite unhealthy food?

 

NURSE JENNI: I love mango.  As for unhealthy food, I love cake - especially Funfetti cake.

 

FIONA: What are you going to be for Halloween?

 

NURSE JENNI: Oh, this is a funny one.  I have an idea of what I want to be and hopefully I can pull it together.  So my husband wants to be Elf - he is 6 foot 6 inches tall and has red hair – kind of similar to Buddy the Elf.  So he wants me to be Jovi, the girl from the movie "Elf."  We’ll see.  Maybe I’ll just wear a pair of ears if I can’t pull it together.

 

FIONA: What are you going to give out at your house?

 

NURSE JENNI: I actually just got this flyer – have you heard of this?  If you put a blue pumpkin on your porch it means you are going to give out non-food treats.  So it’s for kids that have allergies or maybe can’t have sweets.  You can give out something other than candy - toys or stickers.  So that’s my goal for this year.

 

FIONA: My neighbor gives out bracelets and pencils.

 

NURSE JENNI: That’s a great idea.

 

FIONA: Do you have any pets at your house?

 

NURSE JENNI:  We do.  We have two cats, a rabbit, two chickens and two little frogs. We love pets.

 

FIONA: Are you going to dress them up?

 

NURSE JENNI: [Laughing] my girls would love to dress up the cats but I don’t think the cats will like it.  So I didn’t plan Halloween costumes for them.

 

FIONA: My dog was a pumpkin.

 

NURSE JENNI: We used to have a dog, who died a couple years ago – he was 15, and we would dress him up every year! 

 

FIONA: When you were little, what was your favorite book and also what was your favorite subject in school?

 

NURSE JENNI: My favorite subject was math. And my favorite book was “Charlotte’s Web.”  I loved E.B. White – so the “Trumpet of the Swan” and “Charlottes Web” were my favorites.

 

FIONA: What is your past in working? 

 

NURSE JENNI: So I worked in a hospital before I came here.  I worked in the NICU, and worked with little tiny babies that were born too early. And before that I was a teacher.  I taught 7th grade and 6th grade science.

 

FIONA: Did you ever work in an emergency room?

 

NURSE JENNI: I did a couple of shifts in the emergency room when I was in school. And I realized very quickly it was not what I wanted to do. It was too crazy and fast paced for me – but really interesting.

 

FIONA: Did you ever deliver a baby?

 

NURSE JENNI: I delivered 10 babies.

 

FIONA:  Whoah!

 

NURSE JENNI: Yes. So during the last piece of nursing school you get to choose what you want to do – you are done with your classes.  So you can work in the hospital with a nurse in the area that you choose.  So I worked with a nurse who was in Labor & Delivery and during those few weeks, we delivered 10 babies.  It was so fun.

 

FIONA: What was the most serious case you ever had?

 

NURSE JENNI: When I was working in the NICU I was taking care of a baby who had been born at 29 weeks – remember babies are supposed to be born at 40 weeks.  So the baby was on a ventilator and had to be constantly monitored.  That was my scariest case - I was so nervous.

 

FIONA: What do you do on your spare time?

 

NURSE JENNI: My family and I love to go camping. We love anything outdoors, and we have a trailer that we use.  I also love to read and I love to garden.  I really want to become a better gardener.  That’s one of my goals.

 

FIONA: What is your favorite TV show or movie?

 

NURSE JENNI: My favorite movie is “Pride & Prejudice” and my favorite show is “Alaska: the Last Frontier.”  Have you ever seen it, Fiona?

 

FIONA: No.

 

NURSE JENNI: It’s on the Discovery Channel.  They have to build their whole life from scratch.

 

FIONA: Oh, like “Little House on the Prairie?”

 

NURSE JENNI: Yes.  They have animals and do all their own gardening.  It’s so cool.

 

FIONA: What is your favorite thing about working at SHS?

 

NURSE JENNI: I get to know all the students and watch you go from 1st grade all the way up till you are ready to go to the Prep and hopefully still get to see you even then.  I love the relationships.  That’s one thing I didn’t like about the hospital is that you take care of someone, and then they are ready to go, and you never see them again.  So that’s the best thing about being here – I get to see you guys all the time and watch you grow and change and I love that.

 

FIONA: Thank you.