Nursing Scholarship Awarded

Congratulations to Rosalina Salvador, a recipient of the spring 2007 chooseNursing.com scholarship award

From Medical Assistant to RN—that has been Rosalina Salvador’s path, but not without a few obstacles along the way.

After taking three years to complete her prerequisites, competing with 600 students for only 50 nursing slots in a lottery system, and having a baby, she is finalizing realizing her dream. A student at East Los Angeles College, Salvador is scheduled to graduate in December 2007.

She recently started working at Los Angeles County Hospital as a student nurse worker. As a nursing student she is able to start folly catheters, apply dressings and changes. Even though she has been exposed to Labor and Delivery, Renal, Cardiac and ER, it’s the fast pace in ER that has her attention.

As a matter of fact, Salvador wants to become an ER nurse and plans to participate in the 12 week training program for ER nurses. She also notes that most patients are Hispanic, and she will be an asset to her team assisting with the language barrier.

Salvador talks passionately about her mentor, a nurse practitioner she used to work with when she was a Medical Assistant. “She encourages me all the time,” Salvador says, “and she’s an inspiration to me.” According to Salvador many of her instructors have been great.

Oftentimes nursing students need tutoring and Salvador definitely is an advocate for that. If your school offers tutoring she advises students to seek it out. She also advises students to take extra clinicals and to be a student nurse worker if it is feasible. “The exposure is great,” she says. Salvador also stresses the importance of doing outreach work.

Giving back to the community has its advantages and everyone benefits according to Salvador. She has participated in health fairs through her school, volunteered at health fairs with the National Association of Hispanic Nurses giving blood pressure and glucose checks and has participated in the first diabetes expo held at the Long Beach Convention Center where over 6,000 people participated.

In looking to the future, Salvador says getting her masters degree is on the horizon. She will prepare to become a nurse practitioner and work in Labor and Delivery if ER takes a toll on her.

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